Raised by the XMen
by Rogue-Demon
Summary: PART 2 Life's gone to hell in the X-Mansion.Logan and Remy are nowfaced with their wards starting high school.ROCK BANDS,BOYFRIENDS,and MUTATIONS complicate things beyond belief.How bad can two fifteen-year-olds raised by the X-men be?
1. Where are They Now?

"What the hell is that noise?"Logan demands the second he enters the doors of the x-mansion. Storm, Gambit, Scott, and Jean sit in the kitchen drinking coffee and playing some game across the table with ear muffs over their ears. He walks over and removes the cajun's. "What the hell is that noise?" "Dat would be de petite's new drum,"comes the reply as the ear muffs are replaced. Logan scuffs. "What idiot would give a fourteen-year old a drum?" ~That would be her band director, Logan.~Jean tells him, telepathically as she moves a letter onto the board. He replies on his way out. ~I'll kill the guy.~ He walks on into the rec room, closer to the sound of the banging that was beginning to annoy him. A green-streaked dark brown head can be seen over the back of the couch along with what appear to be drumsticks in the light colored hands. "Tara, knock it off!" This has no affect as she continues to bang on the drums. "TARA!!" One fingal clang of something later she looks up at him. "You need something, Logan?" "Yeah...stop playing that damn thing. How was school?"he questions, sitting down in the chair opposite her as she stares at the drumsticks in her hands. Tara shrugs. "It was fine..." "Anything happen?" She shrugs and concentrates on the books scattered around her.  
  
Tara remains silent for a few moments and gives Logan time to study her. Alot had changed since she and Angel had moved completly in with them. Her hair was excatly the same except a little longer and slightly neater and her eyes were still murky hazel colored, but usually had an evil glint in them. She was dressed in black pants, black shirt, and a long-sleeved red sheer shirt that showed off far more then he would have wanted her wearing to school. "Some girl got sent home for not following the school dress code. Angel would like her....I kind of did." "Uh-huh. Detention over yet?"he questions, watching as she gathers up her stuff and stands. She shakes her head. "No, I'm not done yet. One more day...I'm going to go upstairs and do my homework before dinner." Logan knew it was a lie, Tara did too. She wouldn't do homework and chances were she wouldn't be in her room either. He watches her leave, then releases his blades and moves to the vacated drum. "DON'T TOUCH MY DRUMS, LOGAN! THEY COST $3,000!" Logan inserts his blades again and glares at the door she'd vanished out of. "FUCK!"  
  
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"It...ain't...fair..Rogue...I...ain't...five...any more." Each of the words is puncuated by a kick or punch to the bag in the gym. Rogue sighs as Angel's fist slams into the bag again with more force. "Angel, you have to understand Remy's got commitment issues." The fourteen-year old smirks, catching the bag before it can move again; she removes the gloves from her hands. "That ain't commitment issues, that's obssession,"she answers, letting her hair down for a moment before pulling it back into a ponytail so that the black streaks shining throughout the dark brown can be seen,"Rogue, he walked me to class, kissed my forehead, and told me to 'stay away from boys, they're bad luck'." Rogue scratches her head. "You got me there, sugar. I'll talk with him later, okay?" Angel shrugs,"Whatever." She walks over to the bench nearby and picks up a few items resting there. Rogue studies the girl before her, critically. Her hair was still dark brown but with streaks of black and held away from her dark green eyes. Her current clothes were tight jeans, a long-sleeved red shirt with a black tank top over top of that and no shoes at the moment. Angel could now stand eye-level with her without the aid of a table or some other surface.   
  
"Why don't you go wash up before dinner, Angel?"she questions, moving over to the younger girl and putting one covered arm around her shoulders. "Sure. Tell Remy I'll be there in a little while..." "Angel.." "Just tell him, Rogue." She turns and walks away before another protest can be formed. Great, now Rogue's going to spend all night after dinner lecturing Remy. Angel sighs, not wanting to listen to them fight again. She walks out the door and swings her backpack onto her shoulder A smile comes to her face as she sees Bobby leaning against a pillar, staring blankly out across the grass; she hurries over and stops beside him. "Hi, Bobby." "Hello, Angel,"he answers, absently. Angel smiles and bats her eyelashes. "Will you do something fo---" "No, absolutely not! Last time I did you a favor Gambit broke my hand!" "Oh, come on, Bobby...It's really a little favor. Promise to do it." "Tell me what 'a little favor' is first." "Just help me sneak out today,"Angel tells him, putting on her most charming smile; a pick-up from Remy. Bobby snorts. "Not on your life, kid. Go get ready for dinner..." "But, Bobby.." "No buts....go inside for dinner. I have to get back before Jubilee worries." Angel rolls her eyes. "Angel really don't like you right now." "The same to you, sweetie...."  
  
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"Where is she? A little while ago was over half an hour ago!" Gambit looks around the dining room, looking for his ward. Rogue pats his head, reassuringly. She'd picked the gesture up sometime during their second year of marriage. "Relax, sugar, watch your blood pressure." Tara speaks without looking up from the video game she holds against the table. "Relax, Gumbo. This is Angel we're talking about, not Mary Poppins." "But Remy 'pacifically(yes, this should be spelled wrong) told her to be on time for dinner!" "Jeez, didn't know you missed me so much when I was gone,"Angel drawls as she walks into the room and over to Gambit. He looks up as if waiting for an answer, but she simply kisses him on the cheek. "Sorry to worry you, Remy." She sinks down into her seat across from Tara and beside Storm.   
  
"Angel, Remy, no fighting at the table. Dinner's starting..."Jean announces, coming in and beginning to set down the food. For a few moments after food was passed around there's silence except for Logan's slurping and chomping. Scott breaks it. "Do you two have homework tonight?" Two shrugs. Gambit rolls his eyes once, then returns to his food. The "happy couple" had moved out six and a half years earlier, but still spent more time at the mansion then their own hell hole of a house. "Angel, Tara, you got homework?"Rogue questions, looking up from her food and giving the two a look. Two replys of,"yes" this time. "Why don't I get homework?"David Summers, six, questions looking up at his aunts. Jean sighs,"Honey, you're not old enough." "And you're dumb,too,"Tara mumbles, lifting her fork without turning her attention from the game in front of her. Most dinners were spent with her head buried in the game. "Ow!" Her yelp is followed by a clatter as her fork drops to the table along with the food that had been on it. She glares at Logan. "Don't elbow me." "Watch what you say and finish eating,"Logan replies as he stands, taking his plate into the kitchen. Tara mimicks him behind his back before returning to her food.   
  
"Mommy, when will I be old enough to get homework?" David stops eating and looks at his mother. Jean starts to speak, but Xavier's entrance stops her. "My X-Men we have a mission. Report to the War Room now!" The words are spoken like Captain Kirk from Star Trek. Silence for a moment, then the X-Men stand. Angel scowls,"When are we going to be allowed to go on missions instead of just baby-sitting the demon spawn?" Gambit looks down at her, then smiles as he pats her head. "When you're older.." "We get any older we're going to be adults." "Aunt Angel, what's a dolt?"David asks as he looks up from his almost empty plate, most of which is over his face. Angel sighs and wipes his face. "You, you're a dolt." Tara begins to laugh before returning to her video games. "I heard that! Don't call my son a dolt!" "Like father, like son!" 


	2. The Return of Kitty uhoh

"Angel! Tara! Get up!" Gambit wakes up to the sound of shouting not far from his room and his empty bed. Rogue must be the one yelling as no one else yelled with a southern twang to their voice, except maybe himself a little. There's silence for a few moments barred only by the pounding of Rogue's fist against what is most likely the teenagers' bedroom door. "You have five minutes before I get Logan up here,"she threatens, banging once more as Gambit stumbles his way into the hall. He yawns and stares at his wife. "Roguey, mon chere, what are you hollering about at dis early time? Remy feel much better if chere would shut her big mouth..." "Get your kid up and you can sleep all you want or did Remy forget that it was his day to wake up those two rocks?"Rogue demands, glowering at him as he stops beside the door. She hopeless. "It simple, chere. Bring Remy two cups of water." Gambit kneels and begins work on the lock as she exits; he'd picked it countless times before. Footsteps behind him draw his attention as the lock clicks out of place. "There's easier ways to break into that room, Remy,"Tara announces from behind him, her voice muffled as if full of something. Gambit turns around and glares at her. "What are you doing, petite?"he demands, taking in the clothes she was dressed in and the bowl of cereal she was eating.  
  
Tara looks down. "It's Thursday. Thursday's a school day so I'm eating breakfast...or is that not allowed anymore?" "Where's Angel?" "Control room irritating Storm...she keeps alternating between asking questions and eating cereal. Do you need something from our room?" He scowls,"Non, not anymore. You say she's in the control room? What's dat?" "The room where you control the Danger Room. Logan has a session and Angel stopped by to irritate Storm for lack of anything better to do...." Rogue returns at that moment. "Hello, Tara. Is Angel up, too?" She shrugs and eats another spoonful of cereal. Gambit glowers at her. "Don't you and de Angel have a bus to catch?" "Remy, it's 7:08...the bus doesn't come until 7:30...We got ten minutes,"the fourteen-year-old replies as she makes her way back toward the stairs, then down them. "Remy be banging on this door for nothing?" Rogue smirks,"Gosh, what a shame." "Remy going back to bed...and Remy not like de petites right now..."  
  
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"If you press this button what happens?" Storm sighs as Angel points to some button with her dripping spoon. Milk drips off and hits the floor. "The session would end if you press that. Please watch where you put your spoon, Angel..." She shrugs and takes another bite from the cereal before pointing at another button. "Wassat do?" Her words are garbled because of the amount of unchewed and chewed cereal in her mouth. Storm ignores her. "So you're not going to tell me what it does?"she looks up at her, waiting. "Then I have to find out on my own." Angel puts the empty except for milk bowl down and stands, pressing the button she'd asked about. "Angel!" "Mon mauvais."(My bad) She gathers her bowl back up and hurries out, barely glancing at the window to see what she'd done. Storm hurriedly presses the button again, stopping the destruction of the simulation. Logan's voice comes over the intercom from the danger room below. "Don't press that button, Ororo. Ever again...You just dropped the illusions of the simulations and made them real!" "Sorry..."   
  
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"Angel, come on. It's time to catch the bus!" Tara drops her empty bowl in the sink and gathers her stuff, waiting for her friend. After a few moments Angel appears in the kitchen and dumps her own bowl in the sink. "Sorry, I was helping Storm in the danger room,"she replies, gathering up her books and bag,"I pressed a button." "Which one, Angel? Were you helping or 'helping'?" Angel scratches her head as they walk outside. "There's a diffrence?" "With you? Yeah.....a big one." "Explain." Tara sighs as the two head out the door, walking toward where the bus would pick them up. "Helping means you're doing something good, but 'helping' means you think you were doing good, but really...you're causing more problems." "Okay, it's the second one. Cause Storm yelled in that funny pitched voice 'Angel!'." "And what did you do, Angel?" She shrugs. "Mon mauvais....I left afterwards." "Stop picking up Remy's french. You know no one else speaks it, but Rogue. You don't even know what it means usually...." "It means my bad cause Remy tells Rogue that every time she gets mad about something...just spend some time with them and you'll see."  
  
Tara smiles. "That would be torture, spending time with them unless forced. Logan's still trying to destroy my drums. How will he react when you get your trumpet?" "You tell me, mini-mime,"comes the reply after a few moments. "Not sure I can pull this off..." Tara drops her stuff on the ground and begins an imitation of Logan, complete with swear words and ear covering motions. "What the hell is that noise? My damn ears are bleeding! Someone make that damn noise stop!" After a few moments of this and laughter the two return to being somewhat normal until a huge blonde, looming shape catches their attention. Tara scratches her head. o_0 "Didn't we used to have a kitty, Angel? Looked kind of like that...." Angel turns and stares in the direction she pointed, then nods. "Yeah, kitty lied. Want to go play with him?" "We have a bus to catch, Angel..." She pouts,"Just a few moments? Kitty probaly missed us." "Fine. Not long since we have a little bit of time before school....and no jokes, okay?" Angel salutes. "yes, ma'am, sergant." Tara rolls her eyes but follows her friend over to the blonde form leaning against a tree. "Hi, Kitty!"   
  
Sabertooth turns and stares at the two girls before him. Less then identical smiles adorned their faces and they both held books in their arms. There was no mistaking them or who they had been. "No, not you two. Anything but that....anything but you two, not you two." "Angel doesn't think Kitty's very happy to see us..." Sabertooth shakes his head, then turns and runs. "The horror, the horror, the horror!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Tara scratches her head again. "Guess that means no..." "Probaly so."  
  
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Kitty's back! Reivew or no more story. Just kidding'. 


	3. A Diffrence in Communication

Anything but Ordinary3: Don't hail me. That's weird and scary. Time to release the slaves *takes down giant ring of keys and begins unlocking cages with electronic bug zapper, waves the zapper around*  
  
VA-river-girl: There will be plenty of Summers torture once I get up to the "reflection" chapter and a few others. Don't worry about the brotherhood either...they're not completly gone *releases the brotherhood and smacks sabertooth for growling*  
  
Takamo: Yes, I am very aware normally they're nowhere near this bad...they weren't even that bad as five-year-olds...just close. This is parody so I'm exaggarating every detail especially the behavior problems of everyone's favorite once five, now fourteen-year-old children.  
  
Other: Later on when Angel and Gambit are arguing-he's speaking french and she's speaking in spanish. The parentheses are the translations.  
  
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Logan cups his hands over his ears and walks into the mansion. The usual sound of drums echoes but now is accompanied by what sounds very much like the squeal of a dying cow. "What are those two doing now?"he demands, stomping upstairs and banging his fist against the door. One final note comes from the dying cow and the banging drums come to a stop with a final crash; the door creaks open a little. Angel answers,"Yes, Logan?" "What are you two doing and who's cow are you killing?" "Not a cow. It's my trumpet,"she replies as the door opens wider, revealing half a tornado and half a windstorm; he didn't bother guessing who's side was which. A long silver trumpet hangs down from her hand, one finger curls around the slide and her thumb points across the room at Tara who's busy trying to fix something else attached to the drums. Logan stares at Angel a moment. "Trumpet? When did you get a trumpet, kid?" She thinks a moment and holds up three fingers. "Mr. Lewis ordered it two weeks ago, but I just got it at the end of class today. So I'd say about two and a half hours....Tara, when did I get it?" "Exactly two hours, twenty-six minutes, fifty-two seconds, Angel. I think she just figured out how to play a right note...show him." Angel raises the trumpet to her mouth and places his lips against the mouth piece, creating a high-pitch buzzing sound. Logan removes his hands to swipe the trumpet from her, but she ducks under his arm and runs into the hall without breaking off the sound, just making it sound worse.  
  
"Your ears are bleeding, Logan,"Tara points out, helpfully as she stands and makes her way over to him. He growls in response. "That's your little friend's excellent playing. Why wasn't I informed she had a trumpet?" "Because you'd either a. Kill her b. Kill our band director c. kill me for not telling or d. Kill all the above. Good reason?" "Very good,"he replies, wiping blood from his ears and onto his shirt; Tara cringes slightly away and leans against the door a move that reminded him slightly of her brother, Toad. Her image had shifted slightly to match his except that she didn't have the forty-foot tongue, didn't eat bugs, and didn't hop around. Logan shakes his head. He had to be imaginging the greenish tint to her skin. Tara looks up at him as if waiting for something. "Anything new with school? You'd better not be suspended or even flunking something....." Tara shrugs. "I'm a genius. Open house is in two nights. Angel has to bring Remy and Rogue since she's failing English." "How do you fail English?" Logan scratches his head, thinking. "Don't ask me. She's passing Spanish, though...." "Why would she take Spanish? She can get French from Gumbo without having to spend an hour listening.." "Don't ask me. I don't try to understand her mind. That's like....Godzilla on prozac or steroids."  
  
"Godzilla? What's Godzilla, Aunt Tara?" David runs up to her and throws his arms around her legs, hugging her. Tara groans, identical to the way Logan did when he was annoyed. "David, why are you even here? Isn't it past your bedtime?" "Nope, it's only a little after seven! Mommy said I get to stay with you and Auntie Angel for the night,"he announces with a smile that shows his missing front tooth and also the one missing two to the left. Logan smirks,"Have fun, kid. I hope you enjoy baby-sitting." "Logan!" He ignores Tara's pleas and walks off downstairs, leaving her alone.  
  
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Vous plairiez parlez une langue que je comprends!"(Would you please speak a language I understand!) ""No habla usted español?"(You don't speak Spanish?) Gambit glowers at the teenager standing on the opposite side of the room from him, speaking in some language he didn't understand. "Ne parler pas dans l'Allemand, mon ange. Remy ne parle pas cela.."(Do not speak in German, my angel. Remy do not speak that.) "Esto no es alemán, estimado. ¿Jugar la necesidad la adivinación el idioma?" (This isn't German, dear. Want to play guess the language?)Angel replies with a smirk as she taps a pen against the table where her Algebra book and binder rest. "Parler une langue je comprends ou vous êtes mis à terre. .." (Speak a language I understand or you're grounded.) "La promesse?" (Promise?) "Angel, stop speaking that language...KURT!" "Denomina el idioma y yo pararé."(Name the language and I'll stop.) The smell of brimstone and a telltale *BAMPF* announce the arrival of everyone's favorite small blue ex-circus mutant. "Yes, Remy?" "Remy would like to ask you to please not speak German around de petite. She seems to pick it up easily....." Gambit glowers at Angel who simply rolls her eyes.   
  
¡ "Esto no es alemán, Remy! ¡Yo no hablo alemán!"(This is not German, Remy!! I don't speak German!) Kurt shakes his head. "Ze child is not speaking ze language of my beloved Germany..I must mourn now...." A second *BAMPF* and the smell of brimstone later he's gone and the two are alone."Condamner l'enfant! Toujours doit faire des choses difficiles pour Remy! Le fils d'une chienne!" (Damn child! Always have to make things difficult for Remy! Son of a bitch!)Gambit fumes, watching his ward simply return to her homework. "Angel, what language are you speaking?"he asks with as calm a voice as he can since he was almost ready to throw a card at her. "Uno usted no habla. Tengo los deberes para hacer." (One you don't speak. I have homework to do.) For the next several moments the only sound is of Angel's pencil scratching against the paper as she works out her homework. Gambit walks over and reads the work over her shoulder before speaking. "Remy say you're grounded to your room for the rest of the night and no trumpet." "Swamp Rat, you have some explaining to do!"Rogue's voice echoes throughout the mansion. "Va ve lo que mi madre respectiva quiere." (Go see what my respective mother wants.) "Upstairs, your room. now."  
  
Angel gathers up her stuff, shoving all of it into her bag before running up the stairs with the loud clomp of footsteps. Gambit listens to her footsteps fade up the stairs before making his way into the kitchen and the smell of Rogue's southern cooking. It was her night to make dinner. "Yes, mon chere?"he questions coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. She turns around to face him and puts her fully covered arms around his neck, giving him a look. "What were you and Angel yelling about? She wasn't speaking french..." "Non, she wasn't, chere. Remy doesn't know what she was yelling about, but I was yelling because she's flunking English.....de English is her natural language!!" Rogue's hand curls into the muscles of his arms as she tries not to laugh. "Have you ever listened to your own English before, sugar? You're her role model....not the best thing in the world." "Remy's English is fine and he would thank his chere not to mention it again,"Gambit huffs as he backs her up against the counter for no reason, except to irritate her; she pushes against his chest, slightly. "Get off, Remy..." ~No hanky panky in the kitchen.~ Rogue blushes, but sends what is most likely the same response as him. ~Shut up, Jean.~ "Remy, do you have any idea what language she's speaking, sugar?" He shrugs. "It not German." "Right because Kurt speaks German, but.....that isn't his language...we have to attend open house at her school in two nights. No cards, no charging, no threatening, and no third person, got it?" Gambit smiles, cockily and bends his head enough to leave their lips barely a breathe apart. "Bien sûr, mon coeur."(Of course, my heart.) Rogue doesn't move back for once. "No third person and no charging....Go get the others for dinner." "Anyt'ing for you, chere....." He walks out of the kitchen, whistling something under his breathe that sounds like an off key version of the I LOVE LUCY theme song. "ROGUEY SAY FOR REMY TO TELL EV ERYONE THAT DINNER IS READY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  
  
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This chapter is leadnig up to baby-sitting for the summers' demon spawn *locks his back in a cage.....er pretty, comfy hotel room* There will also be a two part open house chapter...Part one is Angel's teachers and part two and Tara's teachers or maybe the other way around..you'll have to see and plenty more torture coming up for everyone. Thanks for revieiwng again. *locks other characters up in their......um white walled hotel rooms with blood stains* 


	4. Demon Spawn REPEATED

Anything but Ordinary3: Yes, I use a translator most of the time. Some of the Spanish is from my sister's good guidance...*waves bug zapper at x-men for snickering* Zip it. freetranslation.com is the only one I know of and use. It can translate-Spanish, French, German, English, Polis, and somethin' else, too.  
  
VA-river-gal: No, Logan won't be deaf. The two chil'ren *puts on fake cajun accent* will be getting no more insturments or noise makers...I don't think anyway *peers into hotel room to check on the evil chil'ren* Oh, gracious, not again! *hurries into the hotel room to stop more blood shed*  
  
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"Angel, open this door! I'm not baby-sitting alone!" "I can't! Tara, Remy grounded me to this room for the rest of the night,"Angel hollers back through the door of their bedroom. Tara scowls and tries to shove the door open, a difficult task since from the sound inside their room Angel is sitting against the door. "Angel, you open this door now! You are not grounded from baby-sitting no matter what Remy said. ANGEL!" Something crashes downstairs and she groans before taking off to see what David had done.   
  
Downstairs: Living Room: David  
  
"David, what did you do?"Tara demands as she makes her way into the room and studies the now broken tv. David looks up innocently from the bag of popcorn he holds in his small, pudgy hands. "I didn't do nuthin', Aunt Tara......want popcorn?"he questions, innocently as he eats another handful. Tara just stares at him. "Tv, Broke, Explain, one minute." Angel's simple "Tarzan" language apparantly does good as he begins to describe something about cartoons and throwing a toy car. "Wait a minute, I thought you were grounded to your room, Angel?" "Um....I am, but how could I leave you alone with the demon spawn?"she questions without looking away from the guilty six-year-old. Tara scratches her head. "Funny...Didn't we get called "Demon Spawn" when we were his age?" "Yeah...Scott called us that an' Kitty an' the blue chick an' the bad froggy.....an' the dude with the space helmet. Scary to think about..." Both girls shudder at the thought. Tara brightens, suddenly. "We were nothing like David and even if we were we're not anymore,"she explains,"Angel, take the demon child to the kitchen and get him some food while I try to figure out how to fix the tv."   
  
"Don't try. DO. David, come to the kitchen...don't you want some leftover...um, chicken?" "Cluck, cluck!" David runs into the kitchen, followed shortly by an annoyed Angel. Tara rubs her hands together and kneels by the tv, going over the wrecked tv with her hands. "Wow, that's a lot of damage...what kind of car causes this much damage?" There's no answer, she hadn't really expected one. "Hmm, let me think....I got it! This'll be a synch!"  
  
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"Want me to take you to a place where you can see a lotta chickens?" Tara looks up from her video game and at Angel, confused. "What are you up to?"she questions, noticing her friend's eyes intent on David who had been forcing her to read some book over and over for the last hour-a book about chickens. David's smile beams. "Yeah, I want chickens! Loss and loss (lots) of chickens!" Angel smiles and stands, pulling on her jacket and zipping it up, since outside there were clouds and a heavy wind blowing. The six-year-old drops the book and stuggles into his jacket. "Angel..." Tara shuts off the video game, AFTER saving. She gets ignored. "Angel Eli--" "Don't say that name. I'm just going to take him to see some chickens, Tara...want to come?" She walks around the table and mumbles something, quiet so only Tara could hear. David bounces up and down on his feet. "Chickens, Aunt Angel, chickens!" Tara shakes her head, but stands, stretching. "Sure, David...we'll get you chickens. Let's go."  
  
"...Are you sure this is safe, Angel?" Tara looks up at David, who's now hanging off the front gate by the back of his shirt, clapping his hands, enthusiastically. She shrugs. "Safe enough. The odds of his falling are like....1000 to 19! The duct tape should hold him in place..." "When will the chickens come?"David yells without stopping in his clapping. "Soon...very soon." "Angel, there aren't any chickens around. The odds would be more like 100 to 9..just so you know." Angel rolls her eyes and heads back toward the mansion doors. "Point being? It doesn't matter....He won't fall. I have faith in my-our handiwork." Tara shakes her head, but follows her friend back inside. "If only I could have that kind of faith, if only." "Here, chickens, chickens! Cluck, cluck, cluck, cluck!"  
  
"If x6 what would x be in the equation- 5x-11?" Angel erases the work from her paper and looks at Tara, watching the semi-fixed, except for some static, tv. "X=3,"comes the reply even though she never moves her eyes from the tv in front of her and some blood and gore movie playing,"You should really do your own work, Angel. You won't always have me around...."(Gambit:This isn't the right answer! The author couldn't even figure out this problem! xRDx:*knocks out the annoying one and locks him up again...er*How did he guess I'm failing Algebra 2?)Pencil scratches against paper for a little while before an answer comes. "I'd better have you around for always!" "Forever, not for always." "There's a diffrence?" Angel closes the notebook, putting it into her bag and removing a normal reading book. Tara shakes her head. "Nevermind." "If you say so." Angel replys as she opens the book and begins to read. Silence echoes between them for a few moments except for the turning of pages and the clicking of the remote to other channels. Tara breaks it as something begins to pelt down on the roof; she looks up. "Is it raining, Angel?" She shrugs in response, lifting her head from the book to listen. "Yeah.." "It feels like we forgot something." Tara clicks the tv volume up louder and turns away from the gory murder scene on tv.   
  
A new voice interrupts them, causing both to look up. "Would this be it, Tara, Angel?"Logan questions, holding up the soaking wet, pouting David by his shirt collar. Jean moves forward and takes her son from him, cradling the six-year-old as if he was an infant. "It's okay, honey. Mommy's here and mean Aunt Tara and Aunt Angel won't hurt you again..." Angel rolls her eyes at Tara. "We ain't hurt him this time..." The other X-Men come into the room as the two teenagers move over to sit together on the couch, Angel bringing her book. Rogue studies the two of them. "Why did you hang David on the gate?" "He was annoying..." "We do not hang chi'lren on the gate, petites." Tara scratches her head. "Not even annoying ones?" Logan scowls once at the "happy" family, worrying over David before returning his attention to her. "No, not even the annoying ones." "How do you know it was us, though?" Angel's question is quiet; she doesn't remove her gaze from the book this time. Laughter follows this statement. "Sugah, don't make us list everythang y'all ever did,"Rogue replies, brushing her gloved hand over Angel's hair and bringing a smirk similar to Gambit's into place on th girl's face. Tara and Angel trade looks. They settle back against the couch, crossing their arms. "You can't remember that much. Start listing......"  
  
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Logan: Angel and Tara are so bad......  
  
Other X-Men: How bad are they?!?  
  
xRDx: No more Match Game for you guys. This is why you don't usually get tv. You pick up things that you shouldn't. This isn't Match Game no matter how many times you repeat that question.  
  
Saber: *holds a sigh with 'NOT KITTY!' written across it*  
  
xRDx: Riight....no more tv for real. How's this chapter people? The next chapter will reflect on NINE YEARS of SUMMER TORTURE! What could be better? *ignores the game of Match Game being played behind her*   
  
Brotherhood: Supermarket Sweep!  
  
X-Men: Match Game!  
  
Angel and Tara: Weakest Link!................what? o_0  
  
xRDx: *shakes head* They need something educational to watch or do.....*shakes head, sadly, walking off* 


	5. NINE YEARS of TORTURE

"Start listing." Angel smiled, knowing that they couldn't possibly remember that much of what she and Tara had done in nine years. Logan speaks,"You were five you tried to make wolves eat Scott, dumped all his visors and clothes in the pool, filled his room with dirt. You turned six and gave Jean a very bad haircut-looked horrid, Angel broke six windows and four of Scott's bones trying to learn to twirl Gumbo's bo staff." Storm picks up the story. "When you turned seven you tried to contact aliens using one of Scott's visors and a black marker, dyed Hank's fur lime green on "accident", claimed toast had eyes and buried all of it in the backyard. Eight came around. You wanted to sale houses....you put the mansion up for sale along with Scott and Jean's house. Tara fixed the microwave and made it shoot out purple sparks whenever you put anything into it. You filled the entire kitchen with popcorn because you believed it equaled garlic and would ward off vampires." Angel shrugs. "Have you seen a vampire around lately, Stormy?" "Don't call me that..." "Let's not forget what we're discussing,"Scott interrupts, tearing his attention away from his wife and son,"The demon spawns turned nine. You two tried to sale David to a circus." "Her idea!" Both point at the other one. "You brought home an 'alligator' that you "found" in the sewer system, Angel caught chicken pox and gave it to almost everyone in the mansion.."  
  
"Den de petites turned ten. Halloween night while everyone was out you locked Stormy in de boiler room and tried to play Joan of Arc." Storm shudders and the two kids snicker at the thought. "De petites got de idea to build a moat around the castle with animal cracker alligators in the water..while Jean and Scott were away." Hank speaks up from the doorway. "And that was a bad thing?" There's some debating on this subject. "Angel and Tara hit de age of eleven. Tara wan'ed to paint Logan's room hot pink, Angel helped. Breakfast was made for de mansion inhabitants....syrup was on de menu. Bad part? Dere was no syrup in de mansion. De speaker went off at 3 a.m. in the hallway and Scott's radio playing "De Itsy Bitsy Spider"." "That's enough listing....we realize how bad we were,"Tara mumbles, playing with the remote that she still holds in her hand. Rogue laughs and shakes her head. "Sorry, sugah, but you asked so onto twelve. You were kidnapped by Apocalypse and he hasn't been seen since Tara told him he spelled his name wrong or your questions about his sex life, darlin' Angel. One of you got the bright idea to remove the adatanium(Logan:Wrong spelling. xRDx: Zip it, you! *threatens with bug zapper* Logan:*cowers*) from Logan's body with MAGNETS." "At least we didn't ask for Magneto's help, Rogue,"Tara answers, flipping a channel on the tv. Cartoons of some sort come onto the screen, beginning to dance. Everyone's attention goes to the tv except Logan, Tara, and Hank.  
  
"Cartoons are not the issue here, people. We were discussing what those two have done to torture my poor family,"Jean interrupts, clicking the tv off without releasing David,"Thirteen. Remy let you watch the Crocodile Hunter and you spent the next four months talking like him and calling Scott 'The Great Gay Ape'." "It was fitting!" Snickers from the others. "Angel decided to sell David to Magneto for the price of freedom, then left David at the brotherhood place when Magneto and the others ran off in fear." Angel rolls her eyes, ignoring Tara's laughing. ~Don't forget hiding all of Gambit's cigarettes and the coffee to make you all live longer.~ The professor's statement is telepathic and to everyone. Gambit glowers at them. "Remy still misses his cigarettes. De pettites lost his fav'rite pack." "Remy, hun, get over it,"Rogue announces, shaking her head. David breaks into the coversation. "Mommy, can I have chickens now?" Several sighs and a "good god" later the room was empty except for the Summers' family, trying to understand their son.   
  
(that's the end of Summers' and the X-Men's torture)  
  
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A loud roar splits through the mansion, but doesn't affect the X-Men sitting in the kitchen drinking mugs of coffee and playing Up Words. "Angel, Tara!"Rogue calls out the door, waiting for some reply from the kids, but getting none,"Jean find those two." Jean shrugs after a moment and makes the word Cat out of Hat. "Can't find them." "Why not?" "Out of area..." Hank stares at her. "Out of area?" "Remy t'ink Jean lost it." "Where the hell are my clothes?!?"Logan suddenly demands, appearing in the kitchen, completly naked. Rogue and Storm's mouths drop open while Jean and the male X-Men just stare. "Oh mah gawd. I never knew you were so....big, Logan." "Why Remy's chere looking?" Gambit puts his hand over Rogue's eyes, which results in a struggle. "Swamp Rat! I wanna see Logan!" "Non! Chere can't see dat!" "Remy!" Logan ignores the females' stunned expressions and Hank's thoughtful look. "Where are my clothes? and Where are those kids?" Storm shrugs and makes Fish out of Dead.(don't ask) "Kids are gone." "My clothes are gone, 'Ro!" The roar shakes the cabinets in the kitchen. "Any idea where they are?" Jean speaks,"Well, your clothes are missing and the kids are missing..anyone know what that means?" "The kids have his clothes!"Hank points out as he spells some long word that no one else can say or even spell, that may not be a real word. Gambit's hand drops from Rogue's eyes as he points one finger at Hank. "Non shit, sherlock." Rogue's smile returns and her eyes go back to a certain "organ" of Logan's. A quite big organ.  
  
*SHINKT* "Wow, it looks bigger when compared with those..." "Roguey, stop looking!" "Can I see yours then, Swamp Rat?" Gambit grins cockily. "Chere can see Remy's anytime she wants...." She blushes for a moment, then stands. "Now. I want to see Remy's now." The two take off out of the kitchen and up the stairs as stunned silence follows for a moment. Jean crosses herself. "Where are those kids?" Logan growls afterwards, looking around the kitchen once. Hank points out the door. "They've been outside since they got home from school. You do remember that the children's open house is tonight?" "Sure...They may not live to see open house." Logan takes off out the door, giving all gathered members a view of his rear end. "Wow.........................."  
  
"Tara, this isn't gonna work. How's Logan going to react when he realizes we stole his clothes to make a bed for some dog we brought home?" Angel rubs her hand over the animal in front of her and Tara's head. *SHINKT* "Why don't you ask him?" Tara jumps up quickly, but Angel doesn't move. "Um...Hi, Logan....Oh god." Tara covers her eyes with one hand as she realizes he's naked; Angel hasn't noticed yet. "Where are my clothes, kids?"Logan demands, holding his blades in front of him. Angel stands at last and swallows, then steps aside, allowing Logan to see the animal in front of them or behind them now. An incredibly large black wolf lays curled up in a pile of what is obviously all of Logan's clothes; the wolf growls. "Oh mah, um....nice package, Logan,"Angel mumbles before turning her back to him agian. She shudders once. Logan glares at them both, then points to the door. "Get rid of it..." "But Logan.." "Don't but Logan me! Get rid of it before I do!" Tears come to both their eyes and stream down their cheeks. Logan stares at them, knowing at least Angel's crocodile tears were fake; he wasn't sure about Tara's. "Just go and do it now,"he commands, feeling a small bit guilty. After a few moments both crying teenagers and the wolf begin walking off toward the woods. Logan gathers up his clothes and heads back to the mansion.  
  
"Told you it wouldn't work, Tara." Angel wipes the remaining fake tears from her cheeks and rubs the wolf's head. Tara shrugs. "It was worth a try and at least we pissed off Logan..." "Right, pissed off Logan. What are we going to do with it now?" "Well---where'd the wolf go Angel?' "Ah, hell. We've lost it." Angel shrugs after a moment. "Saves us the trouble of figuring out what to do with it....."  
  
Further into the Woods  
  
The wolf morphs slowly into a blue skinned woman with flowing red hair and yellow eyes. She speaks into something on her arm. "Buckethead, come in. This is ColbaltBitch.....do you read me, Buckethead?" "Buckethead is out. SlimeThrower here. What you got ColbaltBitch?" "No mutations as of yet apparantly...keep you posted on the House of the Rising Sun situation. ColbaltBitch over and out."(Gambit: Remy know de house of de rising sun. *fantasizes* Rogue: It's a codename, Swamp Rat and how do you know this? *holds up shoe* Gambit: Um..Roguey?) "SlimeThrower, over and out. More on mutations later. MetalAsylum is clear."  
  
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If you haven't guessed the broterhood have codenames. Buckethead=Magneto ColbaltBitch=Mystique SlimeThrower=Toad ClawedPussy=Sabertooth SmallDick=Pietro (yes, I'm adding him-ignore the scaryness of this character) 


	6. Open House:A FAMILY AFFAIR

Forgot to mention this before. House of the Rising Sun is a whore house in New Orleans. There is a song by the animals and a million others about it called House of the Rising Sun. Listen to it and think about Remy and Rogue's conversation. New chapter is starting.  
  
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"Petite, how you get so many Cs?" Rogue studies the blue single sheet of paper she holds with Angel's grades on them; Remy stands at her side, reading as well. "Luck?" "What Remy means is how do you flunk English, Sugah?"Rogue questions, allowing Angel to lead them down a hall and toward some class room. "I dunno, Rogue! My grammar's not real good and I have spellin' issues..I'm passin' Spanish!" "But not English. Dat be your natural language,"Remy says, taking the paper and studying it. Angel shrugs. "Ask my teacher. Here's her class..." "Remy most certainly will!" Remy walks past her and into the room, getting into line with the other parents. Angel and Rogue get in line with him. "What did I say about third person, swamp rat? Let me handle this and you can give Angel a talk a little later, okay?" He glares at her a moment, then allows her to move in front of him to speak with Angel's teacher. Angel speaks first when they reach her teacher. "Hey, Mrs. Crawford...brought my guardians, Remy and Hannah LeBeau..." Rogue gives her a look. Hannah? Angel smiles and mouths. 'Rogue sounds funny.' "Ah, Mr. and Mrs. LeBeau, Angel's a charming student, but her English skills are quite lacking. Most students by my class use correct grammar while Angel seems to be struggling..." "Lacking? In what way?"Rogue questions, giving Remy a look as he starts to open his mouth. Mrs. Crawford removes a file from beside her. "Read this paper she wrote for an assignment. She writes well, except that she writes the way she speaks, incorrectly." "Oh, look, my friend Rebecca's here!" Angel moves to slip off, but stops instantly for some reason. Remy speaks,"Si je relâche votre main qu'il explosera. Pas le mouvement, Angel."(If I release your hand it will explode. Don't move, Angel.)   
  
Rogue lifts her eyes from the paper at the realization of his words; the part of him lingering in her mind translated that statement. She watches Angel's face pale slightly, but she doesn't move. Her left hand is not visible, behind Remy's back. "I hope you're not threatening her with no CHARGE card, Remy,"she says, giving him a look before returning her attention to the teacher. "Of course, mon chere." "Is something wrong, Mrs. LeBeau?" "No, Remy's just threatening Angel with no um...tv...I can see where her problems are and we'll work on it. Anything else?" "Well, yes. The students are asked to write a paper about their family and Angel's was certainly unique..." "Um, Hannah, Remy's hurting my hand,"Angel mumbles, using the name she'd given her teacher,"Make him let go." "What makes you think it's unique?" Rogue glares at the two of them a moment, earning total silence and whisphers from other parents. Mrs. Crawford glances to Remy and Angel for a moment. "Well she spoke of several 'interesting' family members, including Uncle Logan and his death threats, two strangers named Bobby and Lee...several of her descriptions are disturbing. An aunt who reads minds, a werewolf, and a bald man who can control minds...I've been sending her to the counselor, but she swears it's all true. Maybe she should not watch so much tv...." "I don't watch that much! It's all true! Let go of me, Remy!" Rogue gives the teacher back the paper. "Remy and I have um....made sure Angel grew up with uh...an imagination, but she doesn't know when to stop. This is her dream family from when she was younger. We'll have a talk with her about it."Yo no lo quiero en este momento."(I don't like you right now.) The mumbled Spanish comes from Angel as Remy pushes her toward the door still holding her hand, but releasing the charge; the glow leaves her hand as they enter the hall. Rogue turns on him the instant he releases Angel's hand. "What did I say about charging, third person, and other languages?" "...." "Don' do it. Why can't you just obey one order?" "Now, Roguey..." "Don' 'now, roguey' me, Swamp Rat. Both of you go outside and wait while I see the rest of Angel's teachers....Angel, you're grounded for a month and Remy, you're sleeping alone tonight. "But, chere..." "Outside, now." Remy sighs as he makes his way outside. "This is your fault, petite." "Yeah, right, Mr. Don't-Move-or-your-hand-will-explode." "Don't backtalk me..." "I ain't backtalking, just statin' facts." "Zip it, mon angel." "Make me.." The door closes on their bickering and Rogue rubs her head. "What have I gotten into?"  
  
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"Where's this band director guy? I want to have a talk with him....adatanium to face." Logan pushes open the door of the school and walks outside with Tara following. "You can't kill our band director, Logan! It's a required course!" "Yeah, well why couldn't you have a soft insturment like the flute?" "Too high pitch." "Oboe?" "Still high pitch." "Clarinet?" "Similar to a trumpet, more annoying, easier to be out of tune.....Here's the band hall. Mr. Lewis should be in here." Logan pulls the door open, allowing it to slam against the wall and startle several gathered students along with the director who hurries over. "Hello, Tara. Is this your father?" "Hardly." "Mr. Lewis, this is Logan, my guardian...I told you about him,"Tara says, somewhat resigned,"Talk to him while I go visit with some friends. See you, Logan." "Tara-" "Ah, Logan, Tara speaks highly of you. She's doing very well with her drums..." "Drums? What made you give that fourteen-year-old a drum and another a trumpet?" "Well, those were their best insturments and they chose them. Angel's improving as well..." Mr. Lewis smiles, glancing over toward Tara and a few other students. One of them is a guy who has his arm around Tara; too close for Logan's liking. "That wasn't my question. Why did they get insturments? Some people's SENSITIVE hearing gets affected....those two made my ears bleed."   
  
"Quite sorry for the inconvenience, Logan. I guess all of our hearing can't be that good...if Angel would practice more she would be in tune and also have good sound. She's mastered the loud, but back to Tara. Her drum skills are amazing and I was wondering if someone else in her family played drums?" Logan shrugs. "Dunno. I've had her since she was five and ain't much known about the part of her family before that. There might have been and there might not have been...." "Right. She seems quite the shy one sometimes unless Angel or a few others are around and why doesn't like she care for big crowds?" Logan shrugs again, not wanting to explain the whole of "how" he got Tara. "Anything else you need to tell me?"he questions, noticing that Tara and whoever she'd been with were gone from the room,"The kid has other teachers to see." Mr. Lewis nods and looks around once. "Tara's doing fine. A bit more interaction with other students would help her, but I think she should come out of it on her own..." Hell of a lot he knows. Logan simply nods before taking off outside in search of Tara and her 'friend'. "Tara!" No answer comes back and he walks toward the front of the school, wanting to kill her for leaving or whoever she'd left with. If it was that boy he'd kill him.  
  
"Somet'in wrong, mon ami?" The Cajun accent tells him exactly who'd spoken and he turns in the direction of the voice. Gambit leans against the side of the school closest to the door, balancing a cigarette in one hand while taking random drags off of it. Angel sits against the building beside him with her knees drawn up, playing with flame from his lighter which she holds; Tara sits in front of her, facing her. "You and Mr. Lewis have a nice chat, Logan?"she questions, blowing out the flame from the lighter. "don't." "Where the hell did you disappear to?" "Came to see Angel and Gumbo...you look pissed." Logan glowers at Gambit, then takes the cigarette from him, stomping it out. "Why are you two out here to begin with? Weren't you suppoused to be with Rogue?" Angel holds the lighter up to Gambit who pockets it before replying. "Roguey said to wait outside 'cause we fought too much,"she drawls, sounding much too like Rogue for her own good. There's a hint of Gambit in the way she says the X-woman's name. Tara tries not to laugh. "Don't you always?" "Shut up, Tara.." "Sure thing, Angel. You're not the angelic one out of us..." "Shut up, Tara." "Why?" " 'cause!" " 'Cause why?"Tara mimicks her accent with a smirk. Angel shakes her head. "Why'd you have to be a comedian? You passin'?" "Yep. You?" "Flunkin' English. Roguey grounded me for a month...sucks alot..." "Sucks." 


	7. Periods and Sex Education with GambitTha...

Logan stares out across the the front part of the institute. He chewed on the cigar in his mouth without ever really lighting it. "Um, Logan, where's Rogue at?"Tara questions, coming up behind him and standing there as if waiting for something; she leans slightly against the window frame beside him. He shrugs. "I think she went out." "Ororo?" "With her." "Um...Jean?" He thinks a moment, then shrugs. "No clue. Probaly her house with David." She bites her lip for a moment, staring down. "Where's Jubilee?" "Probaly at hers and Bobby's apartment.....or maybe working. You need something?" Tara crosses her arms and shakes her head. "Not from you....when will one of them be back?" "No clue, Tara. Do you need something?"he questions, looking her over; she shakes her head. "Dammnit..uh, no." She turns and starts to walk away, but Logan notices the smell of blood on her. He stops her by catching her arm. "Are you bleeding? Did you hurt yourself? Did someone else hurt you?" On the last question he releases her arm. *SHINKT* "Logan, no ones hurt me but you could say I'm bleeding...." She shifts her weight to her other foot, uncomfortablly. He studies her. "Where are you bleeding? Maybe Hank can help." "No!" Logan raises one eybrow at this outburst. "No?" "I mean, I need a woman's help not Hank's....it's um..kind of personal, Logan." "What could be so personal that you can't even tell me about it, kid?" Tara stares at her feet, scuffing the toe of her Trainers against the floor.   
  
"I got my period, okay?" Logan looks confused, then scratches his head. "What's bad about getting a period? The little things are used to show where one sentence ends and another begins, right...." "No, no, no, Logan. Not that kind of period. My period....someone has to have explained this to you or SOMETHING?!" He shakes his head. "You're getting confusing, Tara. Stop hollering and explain...." Tara buries her face in her hands and sighs. "Sit, Logan. I have alot to explain to you..." Logan sits down on the couch, propping his feet on the table; Tara stares at him, exsparagated. "People of the female sex have what is called a period. Males can't have one. A period is..............."  
  
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(Note: this event takes place a little after Tara explains periods to Logan....yes, this is the period most of you are thinking about)  
  
"Angel Elizabeth Blade, Remy say you better have a damn good reason for missing de training session!" Gambit slams the bedroom door open so hard it slams into the wall with a crash. He almost chokes when he realizes the scene before him. Angel's stuff sits propped at the edge of her bed along with several other articles from the whole "school scene" that didn't seem to belong to her. "Wow, that's really neat,"Angel's voice says even though the view of her is covered by the teenage boy standing in front of her, shirtless. "Angel!" She looks around the boy for a moment, then quickly scrambles up off her knees with a guilty face. "Uh..hi, Remy?" "Petite, explain to Remy why you were on your knees and who de hell is dat?" Gambit removes a card and charges it, holding it up for their inspection. "Here's your shirt, Ryan,"Angel mumbles, giving the boy a black shirt that had been laying on the bed,"Ryan, this is my guardian, Remy Lebeau. Remy, this is Ryan." Ryan holds out his hand, but Gambit simply throws the charged card at him, making it explode on the floor not far from the boy. "Explain, mon ange. Remy hopes it has nothing to do with sucking..." "What?!" Both teenagers stare at him, confused.  
  
He throws another charged card at Ryan before Angel moves to stand directly in front of him. "Remy, stop. I was just looking at Ryan's tattoo." "Remy t'inks Ryan should go. Remy t'inks Angel needs to have a talk." "Angel thinks Remy's off his rocker,"the sullen fourteen-year old replies with a glare of her own,"Bye, Ry. See you at school." "See ya, Angel. Um...bye, Remy?" Ryan gathers his bag and stuff before hurrying out of the room with a brief smile to them both. Gambit points the fading charged card at her. "Don't move, petite." Angel scowls and flops backwards onto her bed, staring at the ceiling. "I ain't your damn petite, Remy LePew!"(it should be LePew like the stupid skunk from cartoons..she's mocking him and if you don't who Peppy LePew is(bad spelling) you're strange) He ignores her and exits the room, making his way down the hall and into the living room. Logan was sitting on the couch watching Tara pace. "I knew there was something I missed out on in Health class...." "Tara, Remy say upstairs to your room now. You and de unangelic one need a talk..." Tara pauses in mid-step as he speaks, then looks at Logan. "If I scream come and get me, okay?" Logan smirks. "Sure, kid." "Thank you." She turns and runs up the stairs, stopping outside hers and Angel's closed, probaly locked bedroom door. "Angel?" "Go away!"comes the muffled reply. Gambit tries the knob. "Open this door, Angel!" "No!" "Geez, how tragic,"Tara mumbles as he kneels to pick the lock. She watches with something like a smirk until the lock clicks and he pushes the door open. Angel's voice greets them from her laid out position on her bed. "Figures. Never lock a door on Remy when he's pissed."  
  
Gambit points to Tara's bed. "Sit, petite." Tara ignores him and settle herself on the side of Angel's bed; her head rests against the headboard. "What'd you do now, Angel?" Angel shrugs as Gambit walks out of the room only to return moments later with a white dry erase board and about five diffrent colored markers. He removes the white covering from the top of the board to reveal the words-SEX EDUCATION WITH GAMBIT. "Oh gawd no." "Rems, we take a health class at school,"Tara points out as she reads the words. He waves her statement away. "Remy knew dat one day de petites would need dis course. First Rule: Don't Swallow." He writes the rule on the board as he finished it. Tara falls off the bed laughing at him while Angel simply stares at him, repeating "oh my gawd". "Second Rule: Avoid Anal Sex. It hurts." "Ow...I just have to know, Rems, how would you know this?"Tara questions, rubbing her head where she'd hit it against the dresser during her laughing fit. Gambit's head snaps up from writing in red. "Unimportant!" "Rogue, Storm, Remy's trying to give us a sex talk!" The screamed statement comes from Angel who still has her face buried against the pillow to avoid looking at their 'instructor'. "Rogue!" "Wait, this is amusing, Angel." "None of that, petite. Rule Three: Avoid Animals..."   
  
"Don't even go there, Swamp Rat." Rogue leans her full weight against the door and glares at him. "What did they do to deserve one of your sex talks?" "Angel was on her knees with some Ryan boy!" "It wasn't like that and you know it, Remy LePew,"Angel scowls, getting up from her bed,"I was lookin' at his tattoo, Rogue. It's really neat and it's right here." She places her hand against the center of her stomache before crossing them once more over her chest. "The tension heats up..." All three look at Tara who from somewhere has produced a video camera and is taping the ordeal. Rogue stares at her. "Tara, I think Wolvie needs your help." "X-Mansion. Helping Logan. Five A.M. Tape Six..." The short fourteen-year-old takes off, almost hopping, out the door. "Swamp Rat, go to your room and you can have a suprise..." "Oh, Remy like the handcuffs." "Out." "Oh, gawd. TMI(too much information)." 


	8. Dinner with the XMen

Something slams into the closed bedroom door, startling Logan and Gambit from pacing the hall in front of the bedroom. "I'm not changing clothes, Angel. This outfit looks fine,"Tara's voice comes from the closed door, muffled slightly. Logan knocks on the door, leaving something close to a dent. "Are you two fighting again?" "We don't fight, Logan!" Gambit snorts. "And Remy de king of French." "France, Gumbo" "Frances, de french." He shrugs just as the bedroom door opens. "If you would step back and allow the girl some room to come out,"Angel says, placing a hand against each of their chests and pushing them back,"Move already." The move pushes them both back only a few inches as Tara exits the bedroom. "Damn, wasn't aware that my getting ready for dinner was so....interesting." "It is when there's a boy involved, kid. What the hell are you wearing?" Tara glances down at her clothes-slightly tight black pants, red elbow-length top that buttons, then ties up the front, and some type of black shoes. She shrugs."Luke like this outfit." "Remy see why. De boy get quite an eyefull." "Clothes?" "Who's? I know you don't own anything like that....looks more fitting of Angel." "What's that suppoused to mean, Logan?" "It means you ain't exactly known for modesty, petite,"Gambit points out, glancing down at her clothes. For once she'd dressed normal in faded jeans and a gray sweatshirt with muppets across the front; he wasn't going to ask why. "I'm hurt, Logan, very hurt." "No, you're not. Tara, go change clothes." "No." "Go to your room and change into decent clothes." "Sure...."  
  
Logan paces the front hall, listening even though he could smell the boy before he reached the door and rang the bell. The doorbell rings. Perfect timing, he thinks with a smile. He pulls the door open and glares up at the boy. "What?" "Is Tara here?" "Yes,"he answers the older boy, then proceeds to shut the door in his face. "Logan, that was him! That was Luke!" Tara appears behind him from some room off to the back. "Luke who? Didn't I say change clothes?" She moves past him, opening the door, still dressed in that disturbing outfit. "Was I suppoused to? Hi, Luke. Sorry about Logan. He's just rude..." She glowers at Logan, then moves back to allow 'Luke' inside. 'Luke' was tall, dark-haired, blue-eyed, and very big-in more then one way. There was no way he could be in their grade. Logan growls, recognizing a few scents he didn't like off the boy.He was beginning to debate killing him. "Luke, this is Logan. Logan, this is Luke, my boyfriend." "Boyfriend? Why didn't I know you had one of those?" Tara shrugs. "Forgot?" Just then Storm's voice interrupts from the kitchen. "Dinner! Tara, bring your friend!"  
  
"How old are you, Luke?"Scott questions, cutting into his chicken with a fork but watches the teenager boy sitting beside Tara. "Seventeen." "Seveteen? Kind of old for Tara...she's just fourteen." Luke swallows what was in his mouth. "Tara's very mature for her age..." "Seventeen's old,"David says, ignoring his almost untouched food. Angel stuffs a piece of a biscuit into his mouth. "Shut up and eat." "How did you happen to meet the KID?" Logan stresses the word "kid" when he directs the question. Luke shrugs. "Band. I helped her learn to play the drums." Too reasons to kill him now. Logan adds 'Helped Tara learn to Play Drums' to his mental list and buries the thought for the moment. The Cajun was blankly poking at his food since he couldn't speak or eat with Rogue's duct tape over his mouth. His solution to Gambit's annoying third person and french. "Rogue, would you please take the tape off Remy's mouth? He's hungry." "How would you know this, Angel?" "Just can." "Why can't I play the drums?" Angel stuffs a forkful of potatoes into David's gaping mouth. "Stop talking. No drums, no horns, no nothing." "Stop tormenting my son." "Make him shut up." "OWWWWW!" Gambit rubs his mouth and chin, completly bare of it's usual stubble thanks to the force with which Rogue ripped the duct tape off his mouth.   
  
The dinner conversations are stopped with the arrival of the Professor and 'Father' Wagner. "Hello, everyone." Silence comes for a moment, then Tara and Angel both get up. "Kurt!" First one, then the other hugs him tightly. "Um..I'm need of your help,"Kurt says, patting both teeangers on the head, lightly before they return to their respectful seats. Logan doesn't look away from Luke. "Is it important? We were just getting to know Tara's seventeen-year-old boyfriend." He emphasizes his age. "Mein Gott, ein Kind molester." (My God, a child molester.) He crosses shimself No one translates the German, except for Rogue who stands and elbows her foster brother. "Don't. I think Kurt needs us." "And?" Gambit continues shuffling his food into his mouth at lightening speed. She glowers at him. "Get up, all of you except Angel, Tara, Luke, and David." Her glares turns to a death glare; the others quickly stand. Scott shakes Luke's hand. "A pleasure to meet you, Luke." Luke simply nods, then mumbles quietly to Tara. "Does his door swing on two hinges?" Angel rolls her eyes. "Oui."  
  
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"Quite the family you have there, Tara. What are the chances that I get to do it again?" Tara sighs and shrugs, leading Luke out of the mansion and to the gate. "When it rains carrot juice." "Guess that's a no....are they always this weird?" "Sometimes worse,"she replies, stopping beside her,"Angel and Remy behaved at least." "I didn't know you and Angel lived together." Tara nods. "Yeah, she's my best friend." "Right. No chance of me doing this again?" "No way in h--" She stops speaking as the familiar sound of the BlackBird leaving draws her attention. Luke looks around. "What's that?" "Helicopter." "Around here?" "Yep. Airport not too far back. I'm sorry about what Kurt said." "He must have been the late arrival. What did he say, Tara?" Tara shrugs and looks up at her window where Angel sits writing on the window, backwards. The words read. I WANT DETAILS. David peers out beside her. "Great....I think you should leave." "Do you want me to cause I could stay..." Luke bends his head and kisses her; she returns it after a slight hesitation. After a moment she shakes her head. "Logan would kill you besides I have to help get David ready for bed." "Right. Bye, Tara." He kisses her twice more before finally exiting the gate. Tara shakes her head. "Why me?" Her walk back into the mansion takes a very short time, but when she closes the door the phone rings. She allows it to ring four times, then picks up. "What?" "We'll talk later. The Luke conversation isn't over." "Yes, Logan. Hang up the phone and go screw yourself." She hangs up, then walks upstairs, ignoring the second ringing that has just begun.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Big moment next chapter. Angel and Tara get full mutations...how bad can it be? Let's just say normal doesn't even compare to two new mutants with very little control. This may take several chapters to get the complete story.  
  
Brotherhoood: They get mutations!? *run and hide*  
  
X-Men: *stunned silence, marred by shuffling of cards*  
  
Gambit: Remy so proud of dem.  
  
Other X-Men: *attack Gambit with random cooking utensils and candles*  
  
Right, this is why I need a reviews. In order to buy them some decent weapons of torture. Any ideas, Anything but Ordinary3? Others ideas welcome. Yes, IDEAS. 


	9. WakeUp Calls to Mutation

"Logan!" A fist banging against his door woke him up much too early the next morning. "LOGAN!" The banging turned into the sound of someone kicking it; someone small without alot of strength. Logan turns over and growls at the door. "Don't growl at me! Come answer this door, Logan!"Tara yells, apparantly kicking it from the out of breathe way she sounds. He stumbles out of bed and gets dressed, not wanting to flash the fourteen-year-old. Her banging changed from on the door to those damn drums. "Knock it off if you want to live, Tara!" She continued to bang on them, worse then normal. He yanks the door open the second he got completely dressed. He picks up the familiar scent of Toad and without thinking picks her up and pins her against the wall with one hand; she cowers there. "Okay, I quit....Wow, I can't touch the floor." Logan stares at her. Something was diffrent about when she spoke and her skin. "Logan, can you put me down? This brings back bad memories..." She digs her nails into his arm; he sets her back down on the floor after a moment and she rubs her neck and looks up at him fearfully. "Sorry, kid." She hesitates a moment, then hugs him. "It's okay, just don't do it again. That can count as child abuse." He realizes what was wrong with her. Her tongue. It was longer, alot longer. Her skin has taken on a more so green tint along with the fact that she crouched slightly away from him. "Oh, shit...not that. Tell me you don't have a mutation." Tara looks up at him, sincerely. "I don't have a mutation." "Ah, damn. We need to find Hank..." Logan starts downstairs, kicking her drums out of the way. Tara follows him with a scowl at his kicking her drums. "Don't kick those! Why do we need Hank, Logan?"  
  
"Wait til we find him first, kid. This is going to be alot of explaining...where's Angel?" "Scott sent her to school already, but said I should come find you. He said that you'd explain about this 'mutation' to me. Explain." Logan sighs, making a mental note to kill Scott. "Wait, til we find Hank." He walks to the medlab and walks in without knocking. Hank looks up from crunching on twinkies and some blue paste. "Oh, my stars and garters! Is there something you need, Logan?" Tara shakes her head as she enters. "Hey, Hank." "Toad, what are you doing here?" "I resent that!" "Kid's a mutant, Hank. It's not Toad but she's a damn good copy, isn't she?" Hank walks over and pokes her. "She is." Tara smacks his hand away. "Don't poke me. Who's Toad?" "She's more than old enough to get one, Logan, but we weren't expecting it to be her brother's..." Tara stares at them. "You two are nuts. I don't have a brother." "Ah, but you do, dear. View the slide show!" Hank moves off to set-up a video projector and turns it on; Tara hops over to the exam table, seating herself on top of it. Logan walks beside her and stands there. The lights dim and a picture of the brotherhood with a large red oval around Toad comes from the projector onto the screen. Tara brightens. "The bad frog. Angel and I played with him!"   
  
Hank nods. "Yes, indeed. He's your older brother....I'm not sure of his age, but I've done a DNA test and yours matches his." A second slide comes up showing two DNA strands, labeled with the names 'Mortimer' and 'Tara'. Tara hops off the table and walks over, studying them. "How long have you known I had a brother?" "Since shortly after you were found here. The information was found out by Jean, but it didn't seem like the right time to tell you,"Hank explains, clicking the slide onto a birth record for 'Mortimer Toynbee' then 'Tara Toynbee'. Tara stares at it for a moment, then glares at each of them in turn. "You lied to me! You said I had no one, that I was an orphan!" "You were!"Logan snaps,"When you and Angel arrived on our doorstep you'd spent the early years of your life in a circus until Angel's parents took you in....you didn't know about Toad and he didn't even know you exsisted. It wasn't a lie, it just wasn't said." "You didn't tell me I had a brother....that was important to me and you kept it from me!" Tears come to her eyes. She turns and walks, or more hops, out of the medlab, leaving them alone. Logan moves to go after her but Hank's large hand on his arm stops him. "Give her time, Logan. She needs time.."  
  
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"CobaltBitch, come in. Slimethrower has found her. She seems upset. What should I do?" Toad waits a few moments, then smacks the communicator. "CobaltBitch, SmallDick, BucketHead, ClawedPussy, someone pick up this stupid call. Slimethrower has found the child." The controller crackles in static a moment before a voice picks up. "SmallDick here. Where is she?" "A park somewhere. Could I talk to her alone? She is my sister..." The word sister felt strange to him, especially being used on a person that was such a stranger to him. He'd almost had a heart attack when Mystique told him about having a little sister, much less Wolverine of the X-Men's fourteen-year-old ward. He watched her swing slowly on the swing, her head was down and staring at her feet. "Talk to her but don't forget the plan. BucketHead will shit frisbees if you don't bring her back. Mystique radioed on the House of the Rising Sun situation?" "Negative. Slimethrower, out." Toad clicks off the communicator and walks over to the swing. "Hey." She jumped visibly and crouched in a defensive way as if she didn't trust him. He holds his hands up in surrender. "Take it easy, Tadpole." "What did you call me?" Her expression darkens to annoyance as she comes out of the defensive crouch. He shrugs. Tara sits back down on the swing, this time facing him.   
  
"So you're my brother?" "Yeah. Funny the little kid that duct tapes you to a couch and covers you in mustard and ketchup is your sister. Seems like we have a little more in common then you thought..." He looks over her; her appearance mirrored his except for several details. "Did you know I was your sister?" Tara asks the question with the innocence only someone of her past could ask. "Not for a long time. I didn't exactly know our parents....." "How'd you find out?"she questions, swinging her legs enough to make the swing sway back and forth. How'd I find out, indeed. Mystique had triumphantly announced the fact and also how good Tara would do with them rather then the X-Men. "A friend told me. When did you get your mutation?" "I'm not sure. I noticed it this morning and went for help...Logan and Hank tried to explain it. What exactly can I-we do, Morty?" "I have alot to explain to you. If a frog can do it, we can except for one thing...." Tara looks up at him. "What's that?" Toad spits a glob of green goo at a nearby tree, hitting it directly. His sister smiles. "Dude, that's awesome! Can I do it?" "Give it a try."   
  
Tara struggles with it for a few moments but finally spits a glob of green goo, it misses the tree and vanishes. "Oops." "Eh, need some practice." Mort's not so bad. I wish I could have known him sooner. She sighs at the thought. Toad glances at her. "What's wrong, Tadpole?" "Nothing. Why do you keep calling me that?" "What?" "Tadpole." He shrugs. "Well most mutants have codenames. I figured Tadpole kind of suited you since you're a little version of me.....Toad, Tadpole. You don't like it?" She shakes her head, quickly. "I do. Just wondered...I should get back before Logan gets upset. See you, Morty." Toad remembers his conversation earlier with Mystique.   
  
FLASHBACK  
  
".....She'll trust you. You're her brother after all."  
  
"I don't want to hurt her, Mystique. I don't want Tara growing up here in this....place."   
  
"You don't really have a choice."  
  
END FLASHBACK  
  
He knew he'd never put her through that willingly. She was family, recent family that he'd never known, had never known him, but she was family, none the less. "Bye, Tadpole." Toad watches her vanish in the direction of the mansion, then speaks into the communicator. "PsychoFlame, come in. MiniMime's on her way back to the House of the Rising Sun. What's going on with Demonic?...PsychoFlame...PsychoFlame..."  
  
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More codenames: PsychoFlame=Pyro/John MiniMime=Tara Demonic=Angel *One more added character that I failed to mention coming along-Colossus. Yes, I'm adding him. Any characters someone would like to see added? Preferablly X-Men cause I've made the brotherhood huge* 


	10. AntiEmotions

"Angel, you're not paying attention." Angel snapped her head up from staring blankly down at the carvings of her desk. She smiled. "Sorry, I um...wasn't feeling very well,"she mumbles, shifting her attention to the words on the board that she didn't understand,"Could I possibly go to the office and call home? My uh..sister was sick and I want to check on her." "Not right now, Angel. A few moments before class ends talk to me and I'll give you a note." The teacher returns to writing; Angel glares at her back. She knew what had happened that morning even if Stormy had called it a skin reaction. Tara was now a mutant. The problem was..would it hurt her? She'd heard a lot about mutants who's powers hurt when they manifested. Please, let Tara be okay. I need her around. "Angel!" A sudden wave of annoyance washs over Angel along with anger. She snaps her head up and glares at the teacher. "What?" "Don't use that tone of voice. You're not concentrating, Angel...." All of a sudden Angel felt like crying and did, breaking down into tears; several books fly off the desks. She sobs openly into her arms then begins to quietly laugh. Tears continue to stream down her cheeks through the laughter. "Angel, stop this now! Angel!"   
  
She struggles with trying to control the emotions but there were a million of them-love, anger, sadness, joy, everything. She stands, shoving her things into her bag and takes off running from the room. The emotions don't stop until she's outside of the school and sitting alone against the trunk of a tree. Angel rests her chin against her drawn up knees, breathing heavily as the emotions leave. "I just got too worked up over Tara. It's a natural reaction.." She wipes the tears from her eyes and leans her head back, closing her eyes. Silence reigns around her and she shifts her position, slightly. "I'll just call the mansion and ask Hank how Tara is...he'll know." Angel stands and returns her bag to her shoulder, making her way away from the school and toward town in search of a pay phone. The school phone would cause more problems. She picks her way carefully through the crowds of people, beginning to feel the emotions again. She begins to laugh for no reason but pushes on; tears follow, then the sharp desire to hurt someone. Natural reaction, natural reaction, natural reaction. She finds a pay phone, puts some money in, and dials the familiar number. A voice picks up,"Hello?" "Hank, is Tara okay?" "And who would be asking this?" "It's Angel,"she says, grimacing slightly at the wave of emotions she was feeling,"She okay?" "Fine, dear. It's just Tara recieving her mutation...shouldn't you be at school?" "Yep, going now.." Angel hangs up the phone.  
  
An older teeange girl passes her and she suddenly hates herself, hates everything she was, hates existing; a garbage can moves away, slamming against the wall. Why am I still here? No one cares about me. All I do is cause problems for everyone. Mom thought so that's why she left me. I know Remy and the others think she died when I was little but she didn't want Tara or even me. Angel places her hands over her ears, feeling overwhelming emotions again. She turns and blindly runs through people, ignoring their shouts, ignoring the moment when she loses her bag, trying to ignore the emotions. "God, what's wrong with me? Why does it feel like I feel everything in the world?"she whisphers, sinking down against the trunk of a tree. Silence echoes in her mind except her own emotion. She knew the fear and confusion belonged to her alone as there was no one else around. "God, someone help me."  
  
Pyro taps his communicator several times. "Demonic showing strange behavior. Possible mutation...Keep ya informed, Metal Asylum. PsychoFlame, over and out. Can I order a pizza?" "NO!" "Sorry, SmallDick...Demonic highgly upset and begging God. I still want a pizza." "No."  
  
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"Remy, Rogue, Storm, Scott, I've called you because something's wrong." Gambit looks up from studying the bookcase to the left of the Professor. "Den shouldn't Logan and de others be here also?" "Logan's with Tara....Jean and Hank are explaining about mutations to her,"Xavier explains,"There's a problem with Angel." A collective sigh comes. "What de petite do now? Angel suspended again, Professor?" "Not quite. It's not what you think, Remy....she's left school." "We already know this, Professor. Hank said the kid called to check on Tara. She was worried...it's understandable,"Rogue puts in, lifting her gaze from the book she'd been intent upon. Xavier sighs. "None of you are getting it. Something's wrong with her. I can't find her location through her mind because it's too jumbled; her emotions don't match." "Speak de English, Professor. What exactly dis mean?" Storm and Scott stand silently by, listening. Xavier rubs his temples. "I've been trying to contact her since the school called. Her teacher said she broke down into tears in class then began laughing." Gambit looks at Rogue. "It be dat time of month of de petite, chere?" "Not funny, Swamp Rat, but no. What do you think it means?" "Her teacher said she was worried about her 'sister'. If I'm correct her emotional problems triggered her mutation.." "Do you have a guess on what this mutation is, Charles?"Scott questions, straightening from leaning on the bookcase. "At the moment? Empath...not just part like our Cajun X-Man but a complete empath." "You don't sound happy." Xavier shakes his head. "I'm not. Most full empaths go insane before they learn to control the emotions..."  
  
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"Angel! Angel, where are you!" The numerous shouts for the girl go unanswered. Gambit searches the woods along with the others. Charles had given them a location for her but couldn't pinpoint it exactly as he usually could. What Remy do to deserve this? "Remy, I think we may have found something!"Scott's voice crackles through the controller. Gambit snatches it up. "What?" "Her bag. Storm and I found them near an old alleyway...it seems they've been kicked around quite a bit; most of her stuff's still here." "Is dere any sign of de petite?" 'None, except for a diner owner who recognized Angel's description. He said she seemed highly aggitated and kept crying but then would laugh...He called the hospital." "Did de hospital come and get Angel?" "She vanished." Rogue's voice breaks into his conversation. "Gambit, I found her." "More later." Gambit cuts off the communicator, hurrying over to Rogue. His attention immediatly finds Angel. She sits against a tree, headphones over her ears, rocking back and forth with her eyes closed; she looked so peaceful then her expression changed as her eyes opened. "Angel?" Rogue speaks the name quietly and takes a step closer to Angel who removes the headphones. "Don't touch me...just go away you're hurting me."   
  
Rogue stops and studies her. Tears had dried along her cheeks while dirt and other tears streaked the clothes she wore. "Petite, what's wrong?" Gambit moves toward her, but she again moves away. "Angel.." He starts to move forward but is suddenly thrown back. Rogue glances at him. "Remy, sugah, you okay?" "Fine, what the hell was that? Was that a joke, Roguey?" "Not mine...I haven't absorbed Jean in months. I didn't do that. Angel." "You know what, Rogue? I really love you. I've never been able to admit it but I do,"Angel says, smiling for some reason as she brushed dirt off herself; her expression changes to sadness. "I can't be around you Remy I'm afraid I'll hurt you. Fear's what keeps me from being with you completely." Gambit and Rogue trade looks. "That be too close for comfort, chere. De Angel's getting creepy." Rogue moves forward, slightly. "Do you trust me, Angel?" Angel's expression darkens. "Trust you? How can I trust you when you still don't completely trust yourself?" "I have to work on trusting, Angel, but I need you to trust me." She hesitates. "I do, Roguey..." Gambit scratches his head, confused. Rogue moves forward and hugs Angel, removing one glove; she tosses it Gambit. "Hold that." He catches it at the same instant as she touches the new mutant's cheek, draining her of the new abilities. After a few moments Angel goes unconscience, collapsing just as Gambit catches her. He picks her not so small anymore weight up, cradling her against his chest. "Tell Scott and Stormy dat Remy has de petite. Dis be a hell of a explanation later.." "Wow, you really do trust me, Remy." "Duh."  
  
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Kind of confusing and yes, complicated but it you haven't figured it out. Her powers are empath(feels others emotions) and telekenesis(emotion controlled); next up: How do the X-men deal with two new mutants? Answer next chapter! 


	11. Mutant Theology 101

Anything but Ordinary3: Yes, Tara seems to have the ugly mutation but I'm not her creator-Takamo.Blame her. Tara has something that will keep her from feeling left out-Mortimer/Toad.He will become important, really important.Hank and Jean try to explain about 'the x-gene' and 'why mutations happen' this chapter.Another character may possibly come along to help Tara but I'm not sure if I should add him.  
  
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"Tara, Angel, pay attention!" Jean glares at the teenager who guiltily jerks her hand away, leaving a long crooked X on the foggy glass. "Stop playing tic tac toe and listen. This is for your benefit, Tara." "Angel wanted to play, Jean! She gets bored in that big cardboard box of a room..."Tara replies, opening her notebook and copying Jean's notes off the board. Tapping like fingers against glass draws their attention; where Angel had been was now a yellow IT'S BORING! sign. Tara begins to laugh but stops as a growl comes from the doorway. The sign vanishes and Tara tries to rub away the makeshift tic tac toe board made from breathing on the glass from either side. "Logan, they won't learn! Hank's test is in two days!" Jean's hysteria is evident in her voice and the tears rolling down her cheeks. Logan nods, slowly. "Take a break. Lunch is ready. Tara, he's here,"he muttesr, looking in on the quarantine room where Angel was sitting on the floor coloring in an almost empty coloring book; she's been there almost a week now. "Cajun's on his way to talk to Angel. His shields are strong enough and she likes him." Tara brightens. "Morty's here?" She hopped up and onto the ceiling. "Yeah, him...get off the ceiling, kid." She crawls over to the door and stops, looking back. Jean's I-hate-kids-Don't-Talk-to-me pout was returning; she stalks out of the makeshift classroom. Logan sighs,"Kitchen." "Thanks, Logan."  
  
Tara drops to the floor behind her brother but ends up landing on her back. "Hello, Tadpole. Still can't land decent?" Toad loks down still in the process of crunching on a fly; she shudders. "That's gross. Kitty let you come see me?" "Not really. How's Angel?" Tara shrugs, picking up a chicken sandwich and taking a bite. "Great." "How are you?" "Great." "Why don't I believe you?" "You're getting old?" "Funny...what's going on with you two, Tadpole?" She takes another bite and plays with the remainder of it; she sticks a fork through the leftovers. "I don't know, Morty. It just seesm unfair..the diffrence in our mutations." "Would you like to switch with her? I don't think she likes the diffrence either,"Toad replies before eating another fly,"Explain the unfair part." Tara frowans,"Angel looks exacetly the same unless you go to mental but she ain't ever been completely normal. Me, I'm another story...I look like a-a-a....a frog!" "Well, yes....that is our mutation. Something else bothering you?"he questions, taking a bite out a sandwich. "No, everyone's trying so hard to help her control it but I don't want to her. Angel learns control, reutrns to school, I'm left behind to home school with Red...it sucks, Morty, it really sucks. I want her to get out of that cardboard box but I don't want her to leave me." Toad nods. "I hear you, kid. Isn't there a test in a few days?" She nods, slowly. "I'll make a deal with you, Tara. If you behave, pass your test, and be civil with Angel....I'll take you to the zoo." "The zoo?" "Yeah, don't all teenagers like zoos?" "Uh....no, Morty." "Oh." "But I do, Mort...I should get back to the medlab. I'll behave,"Tara says, giving him a hug before walking out, sandwich in hand,"Logan, where's my drums? Band practice will start soon."  
  
"Get out!" Jean ducks out of the doorway just a plate shatters against it. She presses a button beside the door, watching as Angel proceeds to toss several items around the room, telekenetically. "Remy, I think there's a problem,"she calls back toward the other part of the lab,"She's doing it again." A chair slams into the glass but doesn't break through. Hank hurries in, holding a syring with Gambit following. Hank moves into the quarantine room only to be throw back. Gambit moves forward. "Petite, stop,"he pleads, opening the door only be thrown back and pinned by a table,"Angel." "We need help in here. Logan, Professor." It takes a few moments to get both in there with Tara following. She puts her drums down and looks aorund. "What's wrong?" A thick book slams into the wall near her head; she ducks. Logan scowls. "Let me guess I get to talk the kid down...why not Gumbo over there?" "They're not talking,"Jean announces, looking on the verge of tears again,"I kind of upset her." "What is new, drama queen?" Tara stuffs the rest of her sandwich into her mouth, chewing. "Shields again, Jeannie?" "They'll help." Logan draws their attention away. "Problem here. What the hell's in that thing, Hank?" Gambit and Hank move to help him or just keep the syring from sticking into his skin. Xavier holds up one hand. "Don't. Go ahead, Tara..." "Are you sure?" She hesitates. "Go ahead." "Angel, you wanna play?"Tara questions, hesitantly, moving her drums into the room; she sits down, picking up her drumsticks. "Why?" Angel tursn to her, hesitantly as if unsure; several items drop to the floor. "We haven't practice in awhile. Come on." Tara begins to play some beat oddly familiar to 'Tequila'. Angel looks unsure for a moment. The emotion was probaly sensed from Tara, Jean guesses, watching as she slowly retrieves her insturment. She places it to her mouth and begins to play along with Tara. The remaining items drop to the floor; some shatter.  
  
"Well, Remy be a fish out de water. How you know dis, Professor?" Xavier shakes his head. "Tara's clam. The rest of my pupiles worry, freak out,or get annoyed...Your emotions fuel her pain. Without realizing it you caused most of this,"he explains in a calm voice, watching the new mutants end that song. "Tequila!" "Magnify any emotions you feel seven times and it still won't equal how she feels it."   
  
TWO HOURS LATER  
  
"The reason an x-gene forms is either of a certain injection or as most mutants a gene breaks off leaving one imcomplete. Most owers manifest with time but traumatic events can bring them on...Mutants can use their powers for bad or good. As X-Men we only use them good." Snores greet this statement. Jean notices the head bent over Tara's desk, sound asleep. Angel lays on her bed, in the quarantine room, zonked out. Why do I get stuck with teaching them?Jean wonders, walking over and shking Tara awake before taping on the glass to wake Angel. "Heard everything you said,"Tara mumbles, rubbing her eyes. "Angel, finish this statement. We only use our powers..." "Once a month." "Wrong. For good only." Tara snickers, Angel shrugs. "She was close, Jeannie. Wasn't Hank suppoused to show us a slide show?" "He will be but you can't even stay awake through my voice.." "Do we have to?" "You must pass this test to become registered mutants, also X-Men....this is required." Angel taps on the glass and writes- Why register? "The slide show projector is here!"Hank announces, wheeling the large black machine in,"Well, hello, kiddies." Both wave. "Ready for the slide show?" Two enthusiastic nods. Jean sighs. "Hank..." "The slide show begins." The lights dim slowly as the projector begins a narrative about mutants, complete with histories, fight scenes, and other interesting descriptions.  
  
"Ohh." and "ahh" echo throughout the entire presentation from Angel and Tara. Jean sulks at what was meant to be her desk. Hank continues the slide show, stopping it briefly to explain a particular moment when mutants were forced to register as a way to keep track of them. "...most mutants are registered under this act while a few chose not to register. These are often the ones that end up dead or killed by mutant riots. Registered mutants are mostly safe." "That explains registration. Thanks, Hank." Angel smiles and nods to show she agress with her counter part. "Thus ends the slide show of 'Mutant Theology 101'. Have either of you learned anything?" Tara nods. "The Mutant Registration Act was passed as a way to keep mutants from dominating the population This act failed when a good amount refused to be registered." "Angel?" "Not all mutant gifts are random. Some are based off of something in a person's genes such as an emotion...this can cause either a good mutation or in some cases like Rogue's and maybe mine an emotional detachment mutation." Hank applauds. "My star pupils, you learned well." "I should be the one helping them,"Jean mutters, darkly from her desk,"I should be helping them." A thud comes as another sign appears at Angel's glass, seperating her from the others. GET-GET-GET-GET-GET OVER IT! (xRDx: this is a song. Millions of people sing it. My brother-in-law has a habit of singing it.) 


	12. I'll Never Forget My First Time

"Bet you can't guess what today is,"Tara announces, drawing a crooked X on the window pane,"It's real important." Angel shrugs, drawing an O on the tic tac toe board they'd created then writing- what? "Our test is today. Remember the big test? One Jean's been all but smacking us over the head with books to study for?" Another nod, another crooked X. "What do you think they'll ask?" Another O, another written answer- stuff. "Smart ass. Think you're ready to go back into the world again?" The tic tac toe board gets erased and Angel speaks. "Maybe, won't know until we try it..." She breathes on the window and draws a second board. Tara does the same on the opposite side, drawing an O. "Think you'll pass?" "How should I know? According to Remy and Jean I have the attention span of a seven-year-old,"Angel sighs, drawing an X below Tara's O,"want to play Hangman instead?" "Sure. You play first... Chose. Would you rather be a genius or have the attention span of a seven-year-old?" Silence reigns between the two friends long enough for Tara to get a head, face, and the line of a body. "Attention span of a seven-year-old. Imagine me a genius...all that information would probaly just make me stranger then I am now,"she mutters hollowly while writing an L on the window.   
  
"You two ready to go? Jean's bouncing around like a wind up ball.....don't look so sad, dears. It's not your execution." Hank walks to the two who hurriedly rub away their game. "Are you ready, Angel?" A hesitant nod is his answer as Tara stands, waiting. He unlocks the door and holds it open. After a few moments Angel steps out of the room, looking around hesitantly; her teeth were buried in her bottom lip. Tara smiles. "What do you feel?" "Nothing...it's just empty except for this feeling of worry. Is that mine?" "I ain't worried about you, Angel." "Thanks, Tara." "It seems Jean's shield practices worked....come, it's time to take your test,"Hank announces, holding out one arm to the door. Angel shrugs. "Ready to do this, Genius?" Tara smirks. "Sure, STERML(Short Term Memory Loss)." It takes a few moments and several stupid comments before they find the front door and join the waiting X-Men. Gambit looks up at their entry. "Anyt'ing?" Angel looks up at him with her most charming smile, a pick-up from Rogue. "What do you think, Remy?" "Remy t'ink you deserve a good smack for worrying me, petite..." "Um...I'm gonna say no."  
  
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"How much longer this going to take, Red?" Logan chews the end of a cigar while pacing the length of the waiting room. Three and a half hours had passed since the kids had gone to take the test. There was no sign of either of them returning yet. Jean sighs,"Stop pacing, Logan. This may take quite awhile....Rogue, please stop hitting Remy. Remy, stop provoking her." "But chere be cheating!" Several other people gathered in the room give them all rather strange glances as Hank continues eating a twinkie. "Leave the children alone." "Which ones?"Logan questions, watching the test students through the window. Tara is busily writing while Angel writes a little then stares into space or taps a pencil on the desk before writing some more. "The ones we can talk to, idiot." "Don't call me names." "Well stop being dumb." "Make me." "That an offer?" "You can't take this offer." A long shrill whistle stops their banter. "Children, please behave. Things are hard enough with two children....we don't need four." Rogue and Gambit begin to laugh. "Logan got in trouble, Logan got in trouble, Logan got in trouble...."   
  
"This is what happens when we leave you alone for a few moments? I'd hate to see if we vanished for a few days..." Tara leans against the doorway, smirking at the man who any other day would have threatened her life or gave a sarcastic remark. Logan settled for growling at her. "You two done?" "I am. Angel's not. What you get in trouble for? Picking fights with Jean again?" "I don't pick fights. How much longer?" "Considering the fact that she's picking up others' emotions, lightly? I'd say give her another hour. One hour and she'll be done." A heavy sigh echoes from the gathered X-men.  
  
ONE HOUR LATER  
  
"Wow, that was almost easy. What's everybody staring at?"Angel questions coming out of the testing room with a yawn,"What I do?" Logan, Gambit, Rogue, and Hank raise their heads from playing what could only be a very confusing, combined game of Poker and Go Fish; no one was sure. Logan glowers at her. "About time. Can we go?" Jean nods. "The test results will come in the mail soon. Until then we must wait..." Tara jumps up from reading some book that she'd picked up. "Come on. Morty promised to take me to the zoo! Let's go, let's go, let's go!" Logan stares at her. "Why don't we sit here a while?"he mutters, tossing the cards at Gambit who somehow catches theman instance before they hit the floor. "Do not throw de cards, mon ami. Dey be important to dis thief." *SMACK* "What was that for?" "For bein' an idiot!" "okay..."  
  
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"Are you sure you want to play, mon ange?"Gambit questions, dealing the cards once more to the gathered Poker players. Logan, Scott ,and Hank look at Angel for an answer; she nods. "Yep...afraid I'll be better then you both? I can tell.." Logan rolls his eyes. "Sure, kid. Deal her in, Gumbo." Gambit shakes his head and deals cards to everyone, including Angel. Why would anyone let de child play poker? Remy never taught her dat. "Money in, mon amis." They put in their money and the game begins. "Wait a minute. I need to get something to drink,"Angel says after a few moments of playing, starting to stand. "You can't just leave in the middle of the game, Angel." Scott shakes his finger at her disapprovingly. "But I'm thirsty. You got a better option?" "Of course,"he replies, taking Hank's untouched beer and giving it to the fourteen-year-old,"Drink this." "De petite be underage, homme." Logan shakes his head. "Just let her drink it. I doubt she even likes the taste, Gumbo." Angel looks at Gambit for permission; he shrugs, trading in a card. She stares at it throughout the first round of poker; Gambit wins. "Ah, hell, I'll try it." She places the bottle to her mouth, taking a drink. The X-guys watch, paying no attention to Gambit's dealing, waiting for her to grimace, spit it out, or something. Logan's jaw drops when she drains half the bottle in one gulp.   
  
"Petite?" "That's good. Can I have another one?"she questions, shuffling her cards together as she sits the bottom back down. Hank gasps. "Oh my, that's not a good thing." Scott stares at his cards. "This hand sucks." Gambit shakes his head. "No...no more beer, petite." Logan shakes his head, trying not to laugh. "What time Tara say Toad would bring her back?"he mutters, trading in a few cards. Scott, Gambit, and Hank all answer. "Seven." Angel hiccups as she puts the a one-third full bottle down. "You asked...that..*burp*...two...hours ago.. it don't...change." Gambit glares at them. "You going to play poker or gossips, mon amis?" "Can I have another beer? I promise not to get drunk....I've never been drunk in my life. Please, Remy?" Angel bats her eyelashes at him. "Pretty please?" "Fine...one more."  
  
ONE HOUR LATER( REMY-TWO BEERS, LOGAN-TWO BEERS/ONE VODKA, HANK-NOTHING, SCOTT-TWELVE GLASSES OF ORANGE JUICE, ANGEL-FIVE BEERS-DRUNK)  
  
"Okay, all...kidding aside. Cards down." The X-guys and Angel put their cards down on the table; a royal flush in diamonds stares at them from Angel's cards. "Petite, you be doing somet'ing Remy not teach?"Gambit questions, watching her take the money and trying to remember how many beers they'd actually given her in the course of the last hour. He wasn't sure anymore but Hank and Scott were beginning to look worried. Logan was annoyed. "How the hell does a drunk fourteen-year-old win three hands of poker...STRAIGHT?" Hank shrugs. "I'm beginning to believe that somehow alcohol affects her brain diffrently then most people...most people become dumber or less intelligent but our Angel obviously gets smarter or at least thinks better. Although she still shows the signs of silliness...." "Don't be mad, Logan. Hey, look! I'm a water fountain!" The four look over to see Angel standing on top the counter, spitting water out of her mouth from between her front teeth. Scott scratches his head. "I don't get it." "Water fountain!" "Petite, off de counter. Remy t'ink it time for bed." Just as Gambit and Hank are about to help her down Rogue enters the kitchen from outside; her gaze darkens at the sight of Angel standing on the counter spitting water while the guys play a game of cards.  
  
"REMY LEBEAU, SCOTT SUMMERS, HANK I-CAN'T-REMEMBER-YOUR-LAST-NAME, LOGAN!" Rogue's screech rattles the windows and causes Logan to cover his ears. Scott and Hank scurry out of the room. "Medusa attacks! Medusa attacks!" "Hey, Rogue!" "Now, Roguey, let Remy explain...." "Explain why she's standing on the counter trying to be a water fountain!" Logan stands. "Darlin', don't be mad at the Cajun. Scottie's the one that gave the kid beer...." Angel jumps off the counter and looks up at them all. "Wow, I want to learn to fly!" Rogue, Gambit, and Logan all blink, staring down at her before Rogue rolls up her sleeves. "You say Scott gave her alcohol?" "Rog--" Gambit's plea falls on empty ears as she flies out of the room and up the stairs. His attention goes to the blue and yellow blur that disappears out the door and around the mansion. "Remy say dis suck." Logan settles back into his chair with a beer. "Go get her, Gumbo. I dare you."   
  
Gambit hurries outside, looking for his ward. Nothing remotely close to the blue and yellow form that had streaked out of the mansion was visible. "Petite?"he calls, walking around and looking for any sign of the kid; there wasn't any for awhile. "Remy's not mad, petite!" Splashing and the sound of 'drunken' laughter draw his attention to the pool area. His worry increases at the sight of the zip-up blue jacket Angel had been wearing hanging over the fence outside the pool. Someone was swimming around inside the pool but making quite alot of noise and splashing. "Remy, Angel sooooooo glad you came! It's time for swim class!" Gambit stares at his 'child' as she surfaces, shaking her head in a motion similar to a dog. Water flies all over the concrete and Gambit's casual clothes. "Mon ange, it not be safe to swim drunk." "Ain't drunk." "What you be?" "Intoxicated,"she mumbles before trying to pull herself out of the pool. It fails. Gambit grips the under part of her arms and pulls her out of the pull, ignoring the hiccups and shivers as he puts her jacket back on her. "Drunk and Intoxicated mean de same t'ing." A loud scream of pain echoes from the mansion's upstairs window. Gambit and Angel cringe. "Roguey.."  
  
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Next chapter TARA AND MORTIMER/TOAD at the ZOO. The time when they are at the zoo will be the same time as the poker game and Angel's 'first time'. How do they get along? Is there anything else they have in common? Alligators, Lions, Monkeys, and THE BAT HOUSE. It's kind of scary. Later on comes-test results, more underage drinking, and......more brotherhood torment. 


	13. Tadpoles and Toads at the ZOO

"What do you want to see first, Tadpole?" Tara looks around the zoo in a strange form of awe considering she was nearly fifteen. "Monkey, lions, bats?" Toad continues talking as they walk further into the zoo. "I think I want to see a monkey,"she mumbles, staying closer to his side then she realized. He looks down at her. "Something wrong, Tara? You look like you're about to jump out of your skin..." She shakes her head without really looking at him. "Never been here before.....have you, Morty?" "Not in a long time. Alright....monkeys, monkeys, monkeys, monkeys.." Toad moves his finger down the listings and stops on one. "Monkeys. I think I know where to go...come on." Tara follows him, slowly, watching all the families gathered together at the zoo; she felt like an intruder at a place for family until Toad pulls her to a stop. "There. A monkey named Tara." "It isn't named Tara, Morty....I think it's named...Hank. Looks kind of like him if you think about it. Tilt your head." Toad tilts his head to the side and stares at the monkey. "Well...you're right,"he agrees after a moment,"Come look. I found some penguins." "It's fun to throw ice at penguins..." "Where'd you figure this out from?" Tara shrugs. "Angel has a game...you shoot ice out of a gun at penguins. It's neat. Remind me to show you sometime."(xRDx: This game is downloadable from the internet. Download it.) Toad nods. "Right..you want something to eat?" "Um...popcorn. Wow, that's what a real penguin looks like." Tara stares at the black and white creatured waddling around until he returns with her popcorn.  
  
"You like the penguin, Tadpole?" He lightly taps her on the head to get her attention. Tara rubs her head, looking up at him. "What was that for, Morty? I was watching the penguin...can I give it popcorn." "No. Sign says no feeding the animals." "Right..."she nods, popping a handful of popcorn into her mouth as they continue to walk around, looking at diffrent animals. Tara pulls back from him when they reach the alligator pen. She watches the alligator for a little while then throws handfuls of popcorn at it. "Tara, would you stop that for a minute. What's wrong?" "I don't like him..." Toad stares at her in a confused manner, ignoring the odd stares they were recieving. They'd been getting them all day. "Right, why not? Come on, talk to me...why don't you like the alligator..." After a few more moments of throwing popcorn at him she stops and throws away the empty box. "Tell Mortimer what the alligator did." Tara hesitates a moment, peering through the glass at him. "I got threatened with one when I was in...the circus." Toad freezes. "Circus? Threatened with an alligator? Why, Tara?"   
  
"I wouldn't do what they wanted...it seems stupid now but I was five and an alligator was scary." Toad nods. "No more alligators. What else do you want to see? Anything you want....." Tara smiles. "The Reptile House!" Her words echo. "Reptiles? Sure...but if any of them bite me I'm biting back,"he agrees, taking her arm and leading her to the big dome like cave with a bright black sign with red writing-THE REPTILE HOUSE. "Wow, a giant snake....that's really really big. I think he could even eat Logan,"Tara says, tapping her fingers against the glass,"That's a neat image. Logan being eaten by a giant black and blue snake."That's not very nice, Tara. The guy's taken care of you when I couldn't. Don't make faces..." "Wasn't making faces. Oh bats!" "Vampire bats.." Toad moves to stand beside her as she peers at the bats; one swoops down, beginning to lick at a bowl of some red liquid. "Do they really drink blood?" Tara shakes her head. "Course not. Wild ones maybe but these are raised in captivity...it's a blood substitute, Mort." "Right...blood substitute." He shakes his head. My fourteen-year-old sister knows more then I do. Genius. Something slams into him from behind but he simply turns to see what it was. For a moment he was confused until the man behind him's eyes shifted to yellow for a moment. "Mystique..." ~Remember our deal, Toad. Don't fail.~  
  
"You okay, Morty?"Tara questions, pulling on his arm as he stares at where Mystique had been. "Fine...uh, don't you want to go somewhere else? Maybe to get something to eat...." "Sure...I mean, if you're ready to go." "I just..uh, think I'm getting allergic to animals." He forces himself to sneeze. "Oh okay. Let's go then....we can get some food." "Where do you want to eat?" Tara shrugs as they make their way back to the entrance, taking in all the sights. She knew something had happened because his words were tense and strained but knew if she were to ask he probaly wouldn't tell her. "Who was that person, Morty?" "What person?" "Mystic or something. You mumbled it in the reptile house...who are they?" "It's not important...come on." "Where to? I wanted to see lions...can we go see the lions, Morty?" "Lions? Uh, sure...you want some popcorn or something?" Tara thinks a moment then nods. "Cotton Candy then lions...then we can go if you want." "Sure...cotton candy, lions,"Toad mumbles, looking around,"Where can I buy cotton candy?" "There's a vender right in front of you, dear brother,"she says, pointing,"Something's wrong. Who's Mistic?" "No one, Tadpole. Here..." He gives her the cotton candy then looks around. "Lead the way to these lions."  
  
Tara stays with the lions for a while as a way to keep her brother with her longer. She knew the second they left he'd go back to being worried and tense. "Hey, Mort, when do you have to get back to Kitty?"she questions, playing with the cotton candy more then eating it. "Couple hours but I told Logan you'd be back at seven." "Why seven? That's still early....can't I stay with you longer?" "Afraid not, Tadpole. I have something to uh....do for Vicky. What else do you want to look at?" Tara shakes her head. "Nothing. We can go...." "Don't sound so sad. We'll go get something to eat, okay?" She nods, slowly then follows him out of the zoo......  
  
"That looks gross...it's all greasy and dripping." Toad stares at Tara's food. She shrugs. "So? It tastes really good...aren't you going to eat?" "No...I ate before we went to the zoo. Did you get your test results yet?" "No but I did good. Most of what Hank taught us was on there....I think we both passed it. What's Vicky making you do?" She takes a bite out of her hamburger, watching him for his reaction. Toad stiffens and stares at her. "It's not important. It doesn't concern you, Tara." "But you're my brother. What if something happens to you?" She continues eating while asking her question. "Nothing's going to happen to me, Tara, alright? I won't let it...just finish eating." "Mort...." She gives up after a few moments and continued eating her food while he stared blankly out a window. Tara poked at the remains of her food after she finished most of it. "Mort, I'm done....we can go now,"she mumbles, throwing the remainder of the food away,"Mort?" She pokes him with a plastic fork until he looks at her. "Huh?" "I think I want to go back to the institute,"she tells him, continuing to hold the fork,"Is that okay?"  
  
Logan paces the hall in front of the door. The clock strikes 7: 13. "Where is she?"he growls, glowering at the door. Jean looks up from playing with David on the stairs. "Don't know. She's out of area again." "Uncle Logan, can I play with Aunt Tara?" "She ain't here, kid. Gumbo get the little drunkard to sleep?" "Intoxicated, not drunk,"Jean replies, giving hte car she'd been holding to her son,"She's been asleep. Rogue had to lock the door because she kept sleep walking. Stop worrying, Logan. You're projecting." Just as he was about to reply Storm's voice interrupts from the next room over, the rec room. "They're here, Logan. Stop pacing." Everyone wishes she hadn't said the words when the door slams shut. "Oops..." Logan leaps down the few steps to the ground but stop as Tara leans up and gives Toad a hug. "Bye, Mort. Thanks for taking me." Her expression turns wary when she releases Toad and sees Logan. "I'm fine. He wouldn't hurt me, Logan...." "Kid, go inside." "Don't hurt him, Logan." "I ain't going to hurt him. Go inside...don't mess with Angel. She's drunk." "Not asking. Promise?" "Promise." Logan waits until she makes it inside and closes the door before facing Toad who is blankly staring at the ground. "Kid's late." "I know...I lost track of time. I wouldn't hurt her, Logan,"he says without bothering to look up. Logan nods. "I know but she may get too attached to you. I don't want her hurt. She's been hurt enough." "I won't hurt her. Watch her carefully...I don't want her to end up in the hell I live in. Protect her when I can't." His blades exit his hands. "Anyone that touches the kid has to go through these first..." Toad nods. "Good. I need to leave...tell her thanks. She'll understand." 


	14. Fifteen with a VengenanceUNDER AGE DRINK...

"And where do you t'ink you be going, petites?" Gambit stares at the two children leaning calmly against the back of the couch. Angel shrugs. "It's the day we celebrate our birthday. We're just going out to celebrate with some friends, Remy...what's wrong with that?" "Dressed like that?"he questions, gesturing to their clothes. They both look down then at him, confused. Angel had changed into a blue jean skirt that ended just above her knees and a green button down shirt with ties at the elbows along with not quite knee high boots. Tara had also changed into black pants, an army green tank top, and a black sheer shirt over that along with her normal shoes. "What's wrong with their outfits, Gumbo?"Logan questions, not bothering to look away from his tv show about blood and violence. "Remy don't like dem. Dey too revealing..." "Not this again,"Angel moans, burying her head in her hands,"This don't show too much, Remy. Rogue worn skimpier. Jean and Ororo, too." "TMI."(Too Much Information) "Tara, Angel, are you ready to go?"Bobby questions coming downstairs with a paper wrapped box of some sort,"Hank's got the car waiting outside to take you to your friends. This is your present from us but you can't have it yet." "Who helped de petites pick out dere clothes?" The two trade looks. "Stormy." "STORMY!" Gambit takes off running up the stairs. Angel, Tara, and Bobby wait until he vanishes before looking at Logan for confirmation. "Go on." "Thanks!" The three smile before rushing out the door to where Hank is sitting behind Scott's car, eating a twinkie. "Where to, kiddies?"  
  
"Ohhhhh alcohol! Thank you, Hank. Thank you, Bobby." Angel leans up and hugs them both while Tara simply continues going through the box. "Twinkies and alcohol. Nice." "Where do you want us to pick you up at?"Hank questions, stopping the car at the downtown square where they were suppoused to meet their friends. "Uh.....we'll get someone else to take us home. We'd hate to take time away from your experiments,"Tara says, gathering up their 'presents' and getting out of the car; Angel follows. "Thanks again, Hank!" "Who was that? They were kind of blue and fuzzy....." Both jump visibly as Ryan, Luke, and another friend of theirs-Rachel comes up to them. "Uh....that would be our Uncle Hank. He's kind of a mutant,"Angel mumbles, knowing the news would thrill their friends. So far their friends thought the idea of having mutant friends was awesome; Tara wasn't sure how long it would last. "That's cool....what do you have?"Rachel asks while studying the bottle that Angel holds so tightly,"Alcohol? Oh, lord, so what are we going to do?" Ryan speaks up. "Didn't you say you wanted a tattoo, Angel? I can take you to a place where you can get one at your age if you have the money.." Angel smiles but Tara shakes her head. "Angel, no. You do not need a tattoo.....Rems would hit the roof!" "Good." Luke comes up beside Tara. "Well what do you want to do? Anything you want we can do....how often do you turn fifteen?" Silence for a moment. "Twice if you're reincardnated." "Right...." "What are we waiting for I want a tattoo.." "I want to go walking and get hit by a car..." "That's not funny, Tara." "Am I laughing?" "You scare me......."  
  
"It wasn't even painful...well wait it was not it wasn't nah, it was but I searched for someone calm and used their emotion to get the tattoo,"Angel explains, taking another drink from her glass,"It hurt but I mean stealing others emotions of calm helps, right?" Luke, Ryan, Rachel, and Tara stare at her. "Huh?" "I jus thought about something. People say it's cold as hell. Hell's not cold so why do they say it? They should say it's cold as hell when it's hot, right?" Tara stares at the open notebook before her where she'd been scribbling something down. Luke stares at her. "Honey, how much have you drank?" She tilts the bottle up and looks well it was full and now there's nothing in it....Angel only drank a little because Ryan gave her vodka and she found orange juice. Most of the bottle?" "No more karaoke for you two or alcohol..." Tara hiccups. "Good. I was starting to feel sick anyway. I want to go see Uncle Kitty!" "Uncle Kitty?" "Yeah.....Angel help me draw a map to find Uncle Kitty's house,"Tara announces, beginning to scribble once more in the notebook. Angel gives no answer as she was busy with other matters. "But Angel you don't kiss that good for having kissed as many people as you claim, Ryan. Why not?" "You said you liked to kiss me, Angel." "Angel do..but you don't kiss that well. Angel wants to know why not?" The rustling then ripping of paper draws their attention away from the kissing conversation. "What are those?"Rachel questions, taking the poorly drawn scribbled might be a map page. "Directions." Tara drinks the rest of her glass then drinks the last of Angel's. "To what?" The answer is spoken by both Tara and Angel this time. "Uncle Kitty!"   
  
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"Uncle Kitty! Uncle Kitty! Uncle Kitty!" Victor Creed opens the door and stares at the two teenagers standing on the other side, soaking wet. Tara and Angel look up at him. Crickets chirp in the background; a frog croaks. "Uncle Kitty!" Sabertooth backs away from the door but doesn't remember to shut the door. "Who at the door, Vicky?"Toad questions, hopping over to the door and peering out at the two. Tara's smile brightens and she throws her arms tightly around him, hugging him. "Hello, Morty! Guess what event happens on this glorian day?" "What? Get off me....you're wet and smell like alcohol." Toad pushes her away, then closes the door behind the two of them. There was no way he was letting his little sister and her friend walk around in the rain, especially not if they were drunk. "I'm fifteen now. Aren't you glad?" "Elastic....did you come here just to tell me that?" Toad stares at her as Victor moves off to finish eating his ice cream, sardine, and tuna fish sandwich. "Well, yes....but no and maybe, too."   
  
Angel had now moved to the kitchen and was watching John, Pietro, and Piotr play cards. Her eyes stay glued to John a.k.a. Pyro's cards; he trades inn two cards. "You have a bad hand,"she points out,"Tens aren't good." John look at her for a moment then back to his cards. "You only have one shoe on..." Angel looks down at her feet, one bare, one covered with her boot. "I know. The other got lost in the snow." "It's now snowing." "Yet." "I could just melt the snow..." He continues playing cards throughout the conversation. Angel nods. "Angel say true. Bobby could bring it back, though." "Right again. Name's John, people call me Pyro,"he replies as all the carsd are laid down. "Angel, people call me Angel." Pietro stares at her a moment, transfixed. "Why?" "Dunno...it's my name? The big guy wins. Can I play?" "This isn't Go Fish, kid,"Piotr announces as the cards are being shuffled by Pietro, incredibly fast. "Non, really? It's Poker...Angel say Remy says Angel's bad at playing. Are we playing for money?" The three brotherhood members trade looks before Pietro pushes a chair between him and Pyro out with one foot. "Aces are wild." Angel closes the short distance and tries to sit but misses the chair and lands on the floor, hard. "Ow..." "Brilliant move, mate." John gives her his hand nad helps her up as the cards are dealt. "Thank you, Johnny."   
  
"You aren't happy that I turned fifteen, big brother? That movie's not good for you to watch..." Tara stops the VCR and removes the tape, staring at it. Toad snatches the tape from her hand and tosses it on the table. "Do you want something specific, Tara? Or just to drive me crazy? You really shouldn't be here....Angel, either." "Yes, I want something. My birthday present. Where is it? Under the couch? The table? your room? Kitty's room?" She takes off down the hall followed by a "hopping-mad" Toad. "Tara Toynbee! Get your ass bck here!!" "Where's my present?" Tara goes through all the drawers and the closet before beginning to jump on the bed. "Get down, Tadpole...Get off my bed and stand still if you want a present." No sooner then he finishes the words she falls off the bed to the floor, laying sitll. Toad blinks. "Not what I meant. Okay, um....present, present, present for a fifteen-year-old..." He looks around the room then walks to the closet, removing a box of tools. He gives it to her. "Happy Birthday." "Tools. Neat. Goooood murder weapons. Thank you ,Mortimer." Tara syas as she gets up and hugs him. Toad hugs her back then points to the door. "Now out of my room. "Okay, Morty!" *CRASH*  
  
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"I'm Henry the eight, I am, I am. I got married to the widow next door. She's been married seven times and everyone was a widower. Second verse same as the first." Hank pouts some chemicals into a glass beaker and stares at it, singing. He remains like this for a few moments, then begins writing. "Three a.m. Singing does not affect the green liquid but hte purple moves. Combined they do nothing...Green is stronger then purple. I always knew it! They said I was crazy but I'll show them all---" His demonic laughter is cut off by the ringing of the phone. Hank clears his throat and answers calmly. "Charles Xavier's. Dr. Hank McCoy speaking..." "Beast, come get these children. Logan and the Cajun promised we'd never see them again!" "See who again?" Hank unwraps a twinkie, dips it in a beaker of liquid, and takes a bite. "The demon spawn. Those demon children are here.....and drunk. I demand that you come and get them. It's two in the friggin' morning!" Saber's voice is almost hysterical. "And what would the two angelic children be doing?" "Tara's passed out sleeping on the couch while Toad watches a movie and Angel's playing Poker with some 'friends'." In the background Pyro is heard. "I thought you were bad at Poker?" "I am. Bad Sober....no one will play me after alcohol, Johnny." Hank eats the rest of his twinkie and speaks with his mouth full. "I'll send Mogas and Demney to drab de kiddies...." He hands up the phone and drinks the mutated liquid. "Ah, kool-aid, my friend." 


	15. Fifteen with a Vengenance Part 2RAP, PHO...

"M-I-DOUBLE S-I-DOUBLE S-I-P-P-I. MISSISSIPPI! M-I-DOUBLE S-I-DOUBLE S-I-P-P-I. MISSISSIPPI! M-I-DOUBLE S-I-DOUBLE S-I-P-P-I. MISSISSIPPI!" Logan rubs his head and glares the ceiling. "Tara, stop singing that and get down off the ceiling,"he growls, glowering up at the recently turned fifteen-year-old who dangles from the ceiling with a smile. "Why, Logie? It's kind of fun hangin' off the ceiling, rapping out a tune for my hommies, bein' all I can be." "Stop watching the Air Force commercials, kid. Get off the ceiling." Logan jumps up, trying to yank her off the ceiling which results in nothing except the shattering of a vase as his foot hits it. "Be all that you can be...at the Army reserve. M-I-DOUBLE S-I-DOUBLE S-I-P-P-I. MISSISSIPPI!" In the next moment he has climbed onto the back of the couch only to find that Tara has crawled to the other side of the room and is still singing; the couch falls over under his weight and lands pinning him slightly. "TARA!" "Um...M-I...how do you spell Mississippi?"Tara questions, somehow managing to hand down and stare at him with her hazel colored eyes,"You okay, Logan?" A low growl is her response just as the conversation from the front hall and the stairs draws their attention.   
  
"That's not the title of the book, Johnny. And no it has nothing to do with fire." Angel's voice carries along with the sound of Gambit's exsparagated, accent. "Petite, hang up the damn phone. It be five in de morning! John, hang up de phone if you want to live!"he yells, obviously on the second exstension since Angel had been on the first one since they got home over an hour ago. "Don't threaten my friends, Remy Lebeau! I like Johnny and he likes me!" "Petite, dis de last time Remy's going to say dis. HANG UP DE ACURSED PHONE!" "Yeah! That's the title! Killing Mr. Griffin! Wow, you're smart!" Tara grimaces as a yelp of pain and the sound of phone slamming down come from the front hall; Logan glares up at her. "Want to help me, kid?" "...no?" "Remy, Angel, Tara, Logan!" The sound of the Professor's voice interrupts both set of fights. Logan looks up from the couch that still pins him; Tara hops off the ceiling and lands on the over turned couch; Angel comes in cradling one lightly burned hand against her chest; Gambit follows a few moments later looking like a child caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "It is five in the morning. Question One: Why are the children up this late? Question Two: What happened to Angel's hand? Question Three: Why are you pinned by the couch Logan?" As he speaks Xavier moves the couch upright, knocking Tara onto the floor in the process; she slides across the floor, stopping at the bald man's feet.   
  
"Hi, Egghead!" "Pardon?" Logan gets, growling in annoyance as several cuts on his body heal. "I'm...going...to...kill...that...child." "Remy LePew already tried that,"Angel mutters, cradling her hand to her chest as a she would a baby,"Angel's poor burned hand." "It ain't dat bad, mon ange, it's just a light burn..." Gambit glowers at the fifteen-year-old. "M-I-DOUBLE S-I-DOUBLE S-I-P-P-I. MISSISSIPPI?" "CHILDREN!" Xavier's yell startles all four into silence. Angel seeks a shield, moving to hide behind Gambit. Tara edges closer to Logan, staring at Xavier with a mix confusion and admiration. "I, Charles Xavier, Professor of Psychology("Psychology?" *silence*), GREATEST and STRONGEST telepath ever command you all to go to bed and sleep before I allow Jean to come over and cook breakfast in the morning...." Gambit gulps, Logan whimphers, Angel moves further behind her 'father figure', and Tara shudders. Four rounds of 'night, professor' echo before four sets of footsteps take off up the stairs.Angel and Tara stop outside their door. "Night, Remy." "Night, Tara." "Night, Logan." "Night, Angel." "Night, Tara." "Night, Logan." "Night, Angel." "Night, Remy." After a few more moments of telling everyone good night the two retire to their room where both collapse on their beds, snoring heavily.  
  
Logan goes on to his room while Gambit waits counting slowly. "One mississippi...two mississippi...three mississippi...four mississippi...five mississippi..." Almost on cue the alarm within the teeangers' room goes off, playing the theme song from M*A*S*H. For a few moments it rings then the sound of something breaking comes along with a muttered,"I don't want to play anymore cards, Johnny, Quickwart cheats." Gambit shakes his head then begins to make his way to his room. "De petites live to be fifteen. Remy must record that in his events book...." He returns to his room and removes a large black volume from the closet without waking Rogue, who is heavily snoring. He flips halfway through the book after an entry. First Time Drinking. Before that was Mutation Exams. Mutations and Brothers. Gambit writes a headline across the top. FIFTEEN-DO WONDERS NEVER CEASE. He scribbles at the bottom...note to self: drop large truck onto Pyro next chance.  
  
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Short chapter but I couldn't just end their birthday so....anti-climactic. What do you think? Love it? Hate it? Want to BBQ me? Want me to write more? There will be another story up on here later on...maybe within the next week(a serious one). The upcoming story will contradict both this story and Hell is Spelled ANGEL.  
  
Takamo: can I change Tara's past just a little to fit the new story? All I need is to instead of living with the X-Men she lives with foster parents for the moment. Tell me if that's acceptable. Her last name won't change neither will her mutation or appearance. 


	16. GFUD: I'VE NEVER and TATTOOS

Anything but Ordinary3: I don't plan to stop writing this yet. There are still several chapters but the new story features a character of Xx-Disturbed-xX and she hasn't given me the part I need for it so my new one can't go up. The scores for their exams will come in this time but sorry not much of a party.Begin Chapter Sixteen-several months AFTER the last chapter  
  
Takamo: Thanks.   
  
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"Hey, Logan. Hey, Rems." Gambit lifts his head from the almost empty beer bottle and his cards. "Hola, petites." Angel blinks, hopping onto the counter. "Hola?" "Best not to question, Angel,"Tara answered as she took the chair beside Logan,"Hey." "Hi. Cards down, Gumbo..." Both men place their cards on the table, eyeing the others' cards. "--Three, fours, five." Tara begins to count the empty beer bottles whlie Angel takes up a form of meditation on the counter. "Remy win." Gambit takes the money from his and Logan's game in. "Remy say play again..."  
  
Fifteen Minutes, Twenty-Nine Seconds LATER  
  
"...Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, ah, I lost count again. One, two, three, four." "Hmmm." The osund like a car engine comes from Angel, still sitting cross-legged on the counter, humming. "Would you two shut up?"Logan snaps, shuffling his cards in his hand,"That's annoying." "Hank said to meditate at least three times a day. It relaxes the tension,"Angel points out as she uncurls her legs and swings them over the edge, hiting her sock covered feet against the counter. "Dat's annoying petite." "Is it really?" Logan slams his fist against the table, knocking over and breaking several bottles. "Shut them up before I do, Gumbo." Gambit looks around a moment then walks to a cupboard, cards sitll in hand; he rummages through until he finally produces a half-full bottle of vodka and two shot glasses. "Oh, alcohol,"Tara says, watching him sit down with it still in hand. He nods. "Oui,if you two go somewhere else and be quiet Remy say you can have de vodka." "One problem, Rems, we're UNDERAGE!" "She has a point." "Non, in N'Awrlins de legal drinking age be thirteen, Tara,"he replies, holding out the bottle and empty glasses to her. Angel stares at him. "Really?" "Course. Would Remy lie?" "Yes!" Logan cough as he takes another drink from his beer. "When." "Paint. You told me that paint could suck you into the jar and smother you,"Angel points out. Tara laughs. "Shut up and take your alcohol, petites." Gambit gives the glasses and bottle to Tara. She smiles,"Let the games begin." Logan at Gambit as the two begin setting up the counter. "Is this a good idea? Don't you remember their birthday?" "Course. Be chil'ren can't get drunk off of that amount of alcohol...Remy don't t'ink."  
  
Fifty-Three Minutes, Eleven Seconds Later  
  
"Okay. Um...I've never broken a bone." "I was nine!" Angel pours some vodka into her glass and drinks it, grimacing slightly. "I've never tried to start a riot over dissecting frogs in science class." "Didn't try, I did,"Tara answers as she takes a drink without the slightest grimace,"It's cruel. Morty could have been one of those frogs. I've never tried to jump off the school." "What?!" "Relax, Rems. She landed in a tree." Angel takes another shot. "I've never made a bomb or set it up in Scott's room to see if it worked." "Don't even take a drink, kid." Tara stops the shot glass at her lips, gives him a smile, then drinks it. "I love you, Logan." A growl is his response. "Fine. I've never gotten a tattoo." Gambit eyes go to Angel who takes a drink and sets her glass down. "Uh-oh."  
  
"You got a tattoo, petite?" "No..." "Isn't 'I Never' the game where one person say I've never done somet'ing and if another has they must take a shot, non? Remy, right?" Tara nods, hopping off the counter. "Bulls-eye." "You have a tattoo, petite?" "Yes,"Angel mutters; Gambit glowers at her. "How? Who signed for it? Logan? Roguey? Father Wagner?" "Ryan took me to a friend of his dad's that doesn't require parents' signature." "Where and what, Angel?"he demands, pointing to the floor in front of him. Angel doesn't move. "Left shoulder blade. Want to see it?" "Oui. Ryan's influence, non?" "Yeah..." She removes the top shirt she was wearing and moves the strap of her shirt underneathe it enough for him to see her tattoo. Gambit's expression turns slightly confused. A black and green fairy holding four aces, all hearts or spades stares up at him with a mischevious smile. "Mon ange, you are not to be 'round him anymore." "Exciting. We got any popcorn, Logan?"Tara questions, propping her arms against hte back of his chair and leaning her chin on them. Logan shrugs. "Check the bottom cupboard...we got any it'll be there." "Thanks."  
  
"You can't tell me who to be freinds with, Remy! I'm fifteen damn years old!" "And my ward!" "Not by choice! It's not even that big.." Angel pulls the too big long-sleeved shirt back over her head; she hops off the counter, watching him. "Found some!" Tara's shout of joy is followed by the beeping of the microwave after a few moments. "Popcorn, pocorn. I love popcorn." "Go upstairs, Angel." "Fine. Veré todavía Ryan y usted no puede hacer una cosa maldita acerca de lo. (I'm still going to see Ryan and you can't do a damn thing about it.)." She runs out of the kitchen, muttering a string of curses in a combination of french and spanish then her footsteps and voice fade up the stairs. "Nice move, Gumbo." Tara looks up from watching her popcorn spin on the plate in the microwave. "Show's over? I'm gonna go...blow something up. Brilliant job, Rems." "Fermer en haut. Quel Remy s'est-il reçu dans? Le petit cher celui fait les pensées de port de Remy de meurtre elle. .."(Shut up. What Remy got himself into? The small dear one is making Remy harbor thoughts of killing her...)  
  
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Gambit: *shuffles cards* Fatherhood sucks. Why she get a tattoo?  
  
xRDx: Remy, you just lost your accent.  
  
Gambit: non, Remy didn't  
  
xRDx: What do you think of this chapter? Short, sweet, and full of Angel/Gambit fighting. What do you think of the tattoo, Anything but Ordinary? It's changed several times...next chapter is...a freestyle. Ideas? Accepting now.  
  
Angel: My tattoo kicks ass. I want to show Johnny!  
  
Gambit: Non, Johnny bad.  
  
Angel: Ain't! *runs off to play on the swings with Pyro*  
  
xRDx: Where can I get a decent therapist? *looks around, pointedly ignoring Jean* 


	17. Minor Distortion

Natasha Creed is property of Xx-Disturbed-xX or is the other way around? who cares?  
  
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Gambit knew something was wrong the moment he found Logan outside, cowering under a large tree. A cigar shakes in one of his hands as he puffs on it. "Somet'ing wrong, mon ami?" Logan jumps. "Oh, hey, Gumob...band practice,"he mumbles, twitching on the words 'band' and 'practice',"The kids brought friends." "Oui.....it dat bad, mon ami?" "Worse...." Gambit nods and heads inside, whistling the tune to 'Love Stinks' under his breathe. The sounds of 'band practice' hit him instantly when he opened the mansion door. Several notes are taped to the fridge; he reads them.  
  
Went to commit suicide. -Scott.  
  
In town....had to buy a dress. -Rogue/Stormy  
  
"Roguey, don' wear dresses."  
  
Far far far away. -Hank McCoy  
  
Similar notes litter the counter, door, and cupboards. De petites can' be dat bad, he thinks while pulling off notes and throwing them away, Dere's not'ing dat could drive de good doctor from his lab. Gambit knew he'd been wrong the instant he heard the sounds coming from the living room; the scary part was it was actually in tune for once. The sound of someone yelling (or was is suppoused to be singing?) comes from the room along with the sound of drums, a trumpet, and other assorted insturments."No, no, no! That's really, really bad! You're singing too high, Ravine!" "Ravine?"he questions, entering the room with a raised eyebrow. Angel's head shot up from reading some music. "Remy, what are you doing here?" "Last time Remy checked he lived here, petite....who dese...people?" Angel points to Tara. "Well that's Tara, Natasha Creed's on the accustic guitar, and Ravine DeAngelos' playing keyboards....our saxophone player, Dixie MacGranger's got the flu...guys, this is Remy,"she introduces before returning to her music.  
  
'Natasha Creed' was something diffrent for her last name. Red streaked black hair hung to well below her shoulders and her eyes were like his with reversed; black on red. A pair of hole filled jeans and a too big, slightly holey white t-shirt covers her body along with a pair of combat boots. 'Ravine DeAngelos' scared him, plain and simple. Black hair, skin the color of Storm, tight jeans, a black shirt with ANTI-LOVE across the front in purple glitter with combat boots and a black long-sleeved shirt tied around her waist; braclets of every color lined her wrists. There was a tattoo of a heart surrounded and slashed through with barb wire on the left side of her neck. Gambit begins to worry. "Petites, can Remy talk to you a moment?" Tara shakes her head. "Can't, Rems. Band Practice is only another two hours...back to practice. Minor Distortion needs it." A screeching-like sound comes in the next few moments followed shortly by the other insturments and the sound of Ravine's singing; he cringes away. The girl was too high.  
  
One of the windows cracks and shatters after a few moments of vigorous playing; the 'band' stops. "Ah, hell. Second one in an hour,"Natasha mumbles, freezing with her hand poised to play another note on the guitar,"maybe we oughtta go, Angel." "Nah, stay...Professor's loaded with dough." "I smell Creed. Where's Creed? Where is he?" The outburst comes from Logan who appears from nowhere, sniffing the air much like a dog would. All five of the room occuptants look up as he moves around sniffing at random people and sometimes inanimate objects. "I know you're here Creed....where are you...come out...I want to play a little game of Murder in the Dark with you..it's HER!" Gambit waits for the outburst but gets a suprise when Natasha speaks up. "Dude, don't sniff me.....the name's Natasha Creed, not Creed." "Logan, don't sniff my friends,"Tara scowls and tosses one of the drumsticks she holds at him; it bounces off his head and hits the floor with a THUNK. Ravine straightens from putting up her keyboard into a long black bag. "I think that's my cue to jet, Angel....see ya at school tomorrow, Tara, Angel, 'Tasha." "Bye, Ravine..." "Later." "Lata."  
  
"She smells like Creed..."he growls, sniffing her some more. "Logan!" "Dat explains why she and de werewolf have de same name, mon ami." He gets ignored. "Do you know Victor Creed, kid?" "Yeah....he's my dad. Quit sniffing me; that's making disturbing images!" Tara and Angel both shudder. "Too much information." Logan growls. "Vic ain't got no kid..." "Who lied to you? Quit sniffing me!" Talon-like claws pop out of her fingernails and she glowers at him. Gambit stares. "Sharp." "Logan, 'Tasha, no fighting. The rec room's already wrecked..." "That's kind of fitting,"Angel announces, putting up her case and beginning to gather up the other items from their 'practice'. She gets ignored, also. Natasha's talons go in and she smirks. "Sorry...the asshole shouldn't sniff people...it gives them ideas." Logan growls. "Get out! Get out! GET OUT!" His voice echoes and Natasha rolls her eyes. "I'll go....Dad'll be pissed if I'm late. Lata, Angel, Tara...see ya, Rems, Asshole.." She sauters out of the mansion, guitar slung over one shoulder, bag over the other, as if she owned the entire place. "Since when do YOU TWO have a band?" Angel looks at her hand. "About nine days..." She holds up seven fingers. Tara holds up nine. "Nine days....Minor Distortion will be huge some day." "Minor Distortion...?"  
  
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If you're wondering about hte band name I combined Minor Threat and Social Distortion...yes, sue me. This band won't make much appearance but will show up off and on....it some people like the idea I may make a second part to it away from this....it won't be removed unlike my other story which got quite a few 'racist' comments.  
  
xXrogue_demonXx 


	18. The Depressing PointIf there was a depre...

Pyromaniac666: the name is a joke, plain and simple. Get over it.  
  
Anything but Ordinary3: The one with Hank, Bobby, and Tara got removed because people gave me so much negative feedback about Bobby's party joke. This is why it was removed and won't be finished. Sorry to you. This story has two more chapters, including this one. The last two chapters will be very depressing but it is necessary for the next installment.   
  
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~Tara, Angel, Logan, Remy!~ Logan looked up at the voice in his mind as did the other three whose names had been called. "I think we're in trouble,"Tara mumbled as she moved her drums aside and began stuffing music into a folder,"Go see what he wants, Logan, Rems." "Non, you will both be coming with us for once...it be time for dis cajun to stop playing referee. March.." Gambit points at the door. Angel and Tara shuffle out of the room, toward Xavier's office. Their adults follow them and wait at the door as Tara knocks. "Enter." "That's not good, Remy, I think he's upset,"Angel said, entering into the office; she hovered close to the doorway along with Tara as Logan and Gambit both went in and settled into chairs. "You called, Xavier?" Logan leaned back, stretching out his legs in front of him. Xavier glowers at them. "Do you have any idea how many windows those two morons and their band have broken in nine days?" "Um....nine, mon ami?" "Eighteen, mon ami,"he growls, mocking his accent,"Who's to pay for these, Logan, Remy?" "You've paid for the last two-hundred and sixteen in the ten years we've had the kids..." "Yes, have. Past tense. No more...until the eighteen windows are paid for you're both grounded."  
  
"WHAT?!" "Grounded. Tara can't leave her room except to go to the medlab and Angel can't leave except for training. Understood?" "Professor, how will de petites attend classes?" Xavier shrugs. "Jean will come to their rooms, seperately and teach them, seperately." Angel raises her hand. "Um...we share a room." "Not anymore. Tara, from now on you stay in the room across from Logan's...don't complain, Logan." Logan settles for growling at the older man. "Rogue and Storm moved your stuff earlier, Tara...there's no reason for you to see Angel again until your groundings are up." "That's not fair!" "And? Breaking window and making me pay for them isn't fair....Tara, drumsticks. Angel, mouth piece. Now." Xavier holds out his hand; both girls reluctantly place the items in his hand before returning to the doorway. Logan and Gambit both remains silent until Xavier turned to them. "You two will need to make enough money to replace at least eleven windoss and I MIGHT replace the other seven. MIGHT." "Yes, Charles,"both reply like children who know they've been bad and are now being punished for it. "All of you go to your room.." Four pair of feet shuffle out as foor pairs of eyes stare at the ground. Gambit and Logan shuffled off to their room, muttering about stupid rules, stupid windows, and stupid kids.   
  
Tara stopped outside the door to what had been hers and Angel's bedroom. "Guess this means we won't see each other for awhile, huh?" "Yeah." "Won't see daylight, either, Angel." "Speak for yourself. I can...I know how to sneak out." Tara scowls and says playfully,"I hate you." Angel smirks in the process of opening the door. "Who doesn't? Bye, Tara." "Bye, Angel." She watched until the bedroom door shut firmly behind her friend then went off to her new room. It'll definetly be weird to not share a room with Angel, she thought upon entering the room and looking around it, but I have always wanted my own room and it's green. Maybe seperation isn't so bad. I could almost get used to being apart from her but I'd have to come back. Tara slid the door shut again and walked around, looking at things before flopping down on her bed; she stared at the ceiling. "This is new..."  
  
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Mystique waited outside the institute, watching from her new form as the girl slipped through the window and to the ground, dusting off her hands. She listens to her mutterings about being dirty when you have a date and how she'd explain the problem to Remy later. Just a little while longer and it'll be perfect. She waits until the girl passed directly under her then leaps down, catching her throat in a tight grip. It seems longer but was only a few moments before she passes out, unconscience. Mystique shifts slowly. Her hair grows out and changes to brown with black streaks, green eyes replace the yellow, and her scales are replaced by human skin along with jeans and a somewhat too big shirt that fell well over her wrists. She smiles. "Perfect. You have been helpful, Angel,"she tells the girl as she placed Angel's limp body in a clump of bushes before setting off back in the direction the girl had come,"Saber didn't lie about how easy this was." She climbed through the window she'd watched Angel come out of; settling onto the floor to rub 'her' foot after slammming it into the desk under the window. "How many people keep a desk under their window? Not many."  
  
"You would be one, wouldn't you, Angel?" Mystique didn't answer then finally looks up to see Jean. "Right, Red. Now go away." "You have a lesson today, Angel. Charles said that I was to inform you of that and have you ready in exactly two hours. You'll be ready?" The annoying redhead leans against hte doorway as if she'd done it all the time. Mystique smiles. "Of course... I'll be ready and waiting." "Right. Tara said to tell you Logan went to sleep...she said to come by her room. Don't go." Jean walks off leaving 'Angel' making faces behind her back. "I hate her so much." Mystique counts to eleven before moving out into the hallway and down the hall; she wasn't sure where Tara's room was but wandering would find it. Several interesting turns and strange noises later she finds a bedroom with three jagged wood impressions on the door like someone's claws. She smirks. Tara's room. She knocks, waiting. "Logan, go away! There's no one in here except for me!" "It's Angel! Come on..." The door opens and Tara's head pokes out. "Angel, about time....Drama Queen was up here earlier. I'm hungry....come with me to get food. We can't be banned from that....could we?" "Doubt it, Tara. Come on...we have to be quiet." Mystique smiles, thinking how easy it would be to take the girl and vanish before anyone even discovered about what had happened to the real Angel.   
  
"Angel, quiet isn't as easy for you as it is for everyone else. You haven't been quiet since I met you....we were four and a half." She simply nods, unsure of how Angel would answer. "What do you want to eat? Ice cream....nevermind, too much sugar. Sandwiches....no meat except Logan's tuna. *shudder* There's nothing here. Damn Summers ate all the food!" 'Angel' smiles. "Let's go out then...it won't take long but we'd get in trouble for a delivery guy." "No, Angel, I promised Logan I'd be good so I can keep my computer,"Tara says, closing the fridge and going through cabinets,"I have to behave." "Have I ever lied or gotten you in trouble, Tara?" Mystique prays it's the right words. It obviously isn't as she laughs. "Does Kitty have fangs?" "We have a kitty?" Tara sighs,"Kitty. Remember our baby-sitter when we were little....he's so sweet even if he called us demon spawn. Maybe going out is good." Mystique smiles. "This is me, Angel. I wouldn't suggest it if it wasn't good....right?" "You're getting weird. Maybe we should get you some food.." Mystique smirks as they exit the mansion; Sabertooth was waiting. Tara brightens at the sight of him. "Kitty!" His "smile" is grim. "Hello, kid..." The next few moments are a blur but a small scuffle later the institute's outdoor area was clear of anything except grass and a few torn trees and things...........Tara was also gone......  
  
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"Where the hell is Tara?" Logan knew something was wrong from the moment he heard someone sobbing and Rogue's quiet voice, speaking. Storm, Hank, and Gambit look up from the table; Jean looks up from playing with David. "Logan, calm down...something's come up,"Jean says, climbing up from where she had been sitting cross-legged on the floor playing with her son,"there's a problem with Tara." His blades exit his hands the same instant as he moves toward the living room. A hand touches his arm. "Don', mon ami. The petites upset enough wit'out anyt'ing else to deal with..." Gambit's voice is quiet and Logan can sense the sadness in it. The emotion was strange from him. He hadn't felt much sadness from him since the day he and the kid said I do. The emotion was foreign. "What happened, Remy?"he asks, using the man's name rather then some nickname,"Is she okay?" Hank interrupts. "She's with the brotherhood, Logan....from what we've gotten from Angel it was her form used to get to Tara. Angel feels guilty; she's projecting so badly Jean can't go near her and Charles has gone into his mind to protect himself." Logan's blades enter in. "When?" "It's been a while..it's like the reality hasn't set in yet. Angel keeps asking when she'll come back,"he continues, staring down at the table and his untouched twinkies,"Rogue's barely gotten her to stop crying."  
  
"Where is she?" Gambit sighs,"Which one, mon ami?" "Angel. I want to check on her,"he replies before going off in the direction of the living room. It wasn't hard to find Angel. She was projecting and it wasn't easy to deal with where anyone was concerned. He fights it and enters the room. "Rogue, she okay?" Rogue looks up from where she had been sitting beside the couch, stroking Angel's hair. She nods. "As close as she can get right now. Remy and Hank tell you?" He nods. "I'll bring Tara back." Angel turns to face him. Tears have made her face paler then normal and run the eyeliner that had been encircling her eyes; she smiles, barely. "It's my fault, Logan. I'm sorry." She turns back over, burying her face against a pillow as she begins to cry again. Logan starts to speak but Rogue shakes her head. "Go, Logan." He didn't need any further encouragement as his blades exit and he walks back out of the room, dragging them along the wall and leaving six long slashes down the hall. The others were waiting. He stops just in front of Gambit. "We're going, Gumbo. Hank, come but 'Ro, stay with Jean, Rogue, and Angel. We'll be back with Tara. I swear I'll kill them all for this, even Toad..............."  
  
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The big finale is up next then the third part(eventually)- The Unreal World. It seems kind of ridiculous but it all comes to light next chapter and in the third....this must happen. Enjoy, my readers. 


	19. Three S's:Siblings, Seperation, Silence

A/N: Toad is referred to as Mortimer because this is Tara's point-of-view and that's all she ever calls him....at least I think it is.  
  
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"I don't want my sister in this place, Mystique!" Tara curls up tighter in her seat, burying her face slightly against her legs. She was shaking but didn't want to show it since Mortimer was doing so much to help her; she didn't want to be there. Mystique crosses her legs, one over the other and leans back. "It's not your decision, Toad. Magneto wants her here...she stays,"she replies with a distasteful look at Tara,"Sadly." Tara cringes away as his fist slams into the table. "Dammnit, Mystique! Tara is not growing up in this place...I forbid it!" She laughs. "And? What good will that do?" "I want to talk to Vick--Victor or Magneto now." Mystique stands with a smirk. "We all want something, Toad. Neither of you will leave this room until Magneto says so..." She starts to walk out then turns back. "Oh, and Tara?" Tara looks up from her knees, inching closer to her brother. "Don't think Toad will protect you." The instant she left Mortimer moves to the door; there's no longer a door. It's vanished into the metal work of the door.   
  
Mortimer crouches beside her. "You okay, Tadpole?"he questions, tilting his head to look in her eyes,"Tara?" She shakes her head, straightening out of her position some since they were alone. "I-I'm fine. When will I get to go back with Logan?"she questions; her voice shakes slightly as she speaks. He sighs. "If I had my way...you wouldn't be here to begin with. As soon as I can arrange it you'll go back." Tara smiles, halfway and hugs him. "Good...I don't like her. She doesn't wear any clothes...and she's blue, Morty,"she whisphers after a moment of silence between them,"it's creepy." "I agree. Mystique's realll creepy..." Tara wipes at her tears for a moment then looks around the room. "Who's Magneto, Morty?"she questions, running her hands over the table,"I don't remember him from Kitty." Mortimer hesitates. "Do you remember you and Angel played with a helmet and threw it out the window? Old wrinkly dude jumped out?" She nods, slowly. "That's Magneto..." "He gave me the creeps. Why do I have to be here? I want to go back with Logan." "You will. I promise." "How sickly sweet, Toad,"a new voice interrupts, drawing Tara's attention away. Her first thought at the sight of him was. What would happen if he went out in a lightening storm with that helmet on? Have to test that later, she decides before returning to watch her brother.  
  
Mortimer tenses, visibly. "I want Tara out, Magneto. She won't be brought up in this hell hole like me." Magneto's laugh is his answer. "I want things too. Mutant domination for myself. A brotherhood that isn't total idiots and morons. A bucket of chicken but you don't see any of that do you?"he demands, moving around to stand to the side of them both,"This isn't a get what you want world, Toad." Tara remains silent deciding she didn't want to deal with Magneto. "This one thing. Let Tara go...why do you even need her?" Magneto scoffs,"Why else? She's just like you. A worker, loyal after a few beatings, and from what her test scores said a genius..." "You're a genius, Tadp-Tara?" She nods. "Yeah....or close enough. Mini version of one,"she mumbles, staring at her feet. Magneto smiles. "See? Where do you want to be, Tara?"he questions, looking down at her. Tara hesitates then tells the truth. "With Logan. I like my brother but I don't like being here." Mortimer mutters something. "Interesting. You can return to Logan on one condition, Tara." She looks up, curiously tilting her head to one side. "What?" "Don't..." Mortimer's silenced by a glare from Magneto.   
  
His smile darkens. "If you want to see a news cast about your brother's death you can return to the X-Men. I promise you that he'll go through hell then die if you leave." "No!" "Make your decision, Tara. With Logan and let your brother suffer or here and forget the X-Men? The decision is yours...I have company. You won't leave this room, either of you." Magneto walks out, ignoring the words of both, Tara and Mortimer. "Dammnit!" "Morty, are you okay?" "Get out. If Logan comes, you're leaving. If he doesn't you'll run away,"he states, turning and walking away from her. "No!" The single word is all but yelled from the fifteen-year-old. "I'm not letting you suffer for me!" "You don't have a choice. I don't want you here and I refuse to let you be here!" Tara bolts up from her chair. "What good does that do? Either way I lose! I'm staying!" "You're leaving." "Staying." "Leaving." "Staying." "You're. Not. Staying." Tara stares up at him. "Yes. I. Am. Mort. Get. Used. To. It." "Dammnit, Tara, no. If you stay here I won't have anything to do with you..."Mortimer says as he slumps down into a chair, burying his head in his hands. Tears come to her eyes but she curls up once again in the chair on the opposite side of the room, crying. Her plans to keep her brother from being hurt had backfired and now he hated her. She felt worse then she ever had with the cirucs and during the first few months with Angel's and her parents. Sounds like a battle come outside along with explosions and voices. She doesn't bother to look up.  
  
Mortimer's voice interrupts her. "Tara, come here..." She looks up a moment then goes to him, staring at him with tears still in her eyes. "I didn't mean what I said before about having nothing to do with you. If you have to stay, I'll let you. I won't like it but I'll let you." Tara hugs him at the same moment as a new 'door' gets ripped into the room; Logan enters, blades drawn. "Where the hell is she, Toad?"he demands, holding them up,"Where's Tara?" "She's right here, Logan. Go, Tara..." Tara releases him and walks over to Logan. "I'm not leaving, Logan." "Right, kid. Let's go...Cajun and Beast can only hold them off for a little while longer. I need to talk to you brother." "No, Logan...I can't leave. If I leave they hurt Mortimer and I don't want that...please let me stay. If not for him, for me." Logan argues awhile longer then drops his hands, blades entering, defeatedly. "Is this what you want, kid?" She nods. "More then anything...I'm sorry to you and Angel." He shakes his head. "We'll live. Toad, take care of her...anything happens to her or you I'll kill you. Tara, if he dies or disappeares you come back. No arguments." Tara closes her mouth, abruptly. Logan's voice echoed back as he exited the room. "Gambit, Beast, let's go...change of plans..."  
  
SEVERAL HOURS LATER  
  
"Who gets the joy of telling our resident Angel about Tara?" Hank rubs the bridge of his nose and stares at the almost untouched game of cards before them. Gambit draws a card from the deck. "Remy won'. De look on de petites face would haunt Remy's dreams,"he mumbles, passing a card to the left. Logan stares at it a moment then passes it on. "Hank?" "Not part of the doctorial duties, my friend. I didn't sign up for explaining to kids how they lost their best friends,"he replies, placing down a couple of cards and grabbing a spoon from the table; Gambit and Logan follow suit, grabbing for the one remaining spoon. Gambit gets it. "He wins." "Logan, mon ami, dat means it's you." Logan curses and tosses the cards in his hand onto the table. "Jean and Rogue gave her a sedative, right?" "Oui." "Good....drugs'll keep her from projecting too much and terrorizing ever telepath in the house,"he mumbles on his way upstairs and to her room. It was easy to find but suprisingly the only one present was Angel. She held a book propped on her stomache and stared blankly at the pages as if she wasn't sure what it said. The covers lay discarded beside her. "Angel?" She looks up and smiles. "Hi, Logan, where's Tara? Is she resting?" Logan shakes his head. "No, kid...she's not coming back."  
  
Angel's expression doesn't change. "Why not? Why are you worried, Logan?"she questions without putting the book down or moving from her position. Obviously the drugs Jean had prescribed were affecting more then just her powers. Her judgement and empathy both seem to be off. "Angel, she's not coming back at all. It's been given that if she returns Toad will suffer and she won't be part to that..." Logan waits for tears, sobbing, a breakdown, anything but the silence. Angel turns onto one side, facing away from him. "Angel, are you okay?" "Fine, Logan...go away. I need to think and you need to go away..."  
  
BROTHERHOOD PLACE-LIVING ESTABLISHMENT(SAME TIME)  
  
Toad sits outside the door of his sister's room, listening to her quiet sobs. He leans his head against the door, listening with the kind of care only a family member could tell. He hadn't been lying when he said he didn't want her there. The part about having nothing to do with her was a failed last straw....a painful last straw. He stares at the ceiling, listening to her. Her sobbing quiets a little and he figures she's going to sleep now; over an hour of crying would make anyone tired. Toad bangs his head against the wall, muttering a thousand curses against Mystique and everyone else. "A plague of a million generations of morons and idiots just like me and these idiots on you all! A plague, a plague, upon your houses......ah, hell, I sound like Romeo and Juliette's Tybalt." He shudders. "Tara'll probaly be plague enough..."  
  
FIN  
  
That's the end of RAISED BY THE X-MEN. THE UNREAL WORLD shall be up soon along with updates on ALLIANCE:ANTI-TRUST; i'm hoping to get these going faster. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and this is neccessary for the next installment.  
  
xXrogue_demonXx 


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